Congratulations, you are now on my moderation radar.
stop trolling.
You can obviously write sentences and paragraphs, but you are starting to look like an astroturfer here to just slag off Labour (and the Greens). We expect people to bring coherent political arguments, so up your game.
Read this post and the site Policy so you know how moderation works here
understand that we are banning people until after the election if they continue to cause problems
if you don’t understand anything I am saying, just ask
please reply to this comment so I know you have read it. If you don’t, you will be put in premod, and if you continue to ignore moderation you will get banned
Roy Morgan usually at the start of the month, so maybe late this week? I haven’t seen a TV3 one for a while. With everything that is going on politically, will be interesting to see if any clear trends are emerging.
I get it, costs and funding systems and all that. And Northerners won’t mind a toll tunnel at Brynderwyn they’ll be so happy to have it.Like the Puhoi tunnel.
But in Auckland, the Waterview tunnel? There’s no way Aucklanders would wear a toll.
And just like that you get to see why some Northlanders think they’re still being treated like dumb shits. The best part of 100 years of being playthings in games of politics. Simeon Brown or whoever the latest little message boy is can join the legion of Nation Party scumbags whose only real interest in Northland is getting a tick on a voting form.
I've been up north (Auckland to Mangonui) thrice in the last month. There is absolutely no need for any additional massive road building now the holiday highway has been opened. Incremental improvements are needed in Dome valley, and the Brynderwyns are a mess so it may be worth considering bypassing them to the east should climate events make that road no longer feasible.
If this proposal was for a high speed passenger (and freight) electrified rail corridor linking Whangarei-Auckland-Hamilton-Tauranga combined with a push to create a high productivity corridor alongside the rail then I'd be all in favour of it.
If this proposal was for a high speed passenger (and freight) electrified rail corridor linking Whangarei-Auckland-Hamilton-Tauranga combined with a push to create a high productivity corridor alongside the rail then I'd be all in favour of it.
High speed rail to Northland makes very little sense as it is only a short distance and once there one would need to rent a car to get to the myriad townships and beaches that rail or daily public transport will never ever get to. The other consideration is that within the next decade almost all transport will be electric and any presumed fossil fuel saving benefits will no longer apply. France has a very good TGV and other rail systems but you see very few buses.
I've always thought drive on , drive off rail flat cars would be an idea that could save congestion, lives and emissions on highways and provide a relaxing, comfortable journey without the need for hire cars.
There are those types of wagons for cars on the Ghan and Indian Pacific trains, great for long distance travel without the hassle of driving. No reason why they shouldn't work over this side of the ditch.
You should go to cities then, the whole of the Cote d'azur Alpes Maritimes is connected with buses where you have no trains – mountainous areas for example. Cheap, effective, several times a day and evenings buses that go long distance.
Lived in France for over a decade, never owned a car, always lived rural.
And fwiw, look up the feat of building a tram in Nice, something that was done in short time, and the ticket was initially at a 1 euro and is now something 1.5 euros. By a conservative deputee no less. Not a single greeny came help.
NZ does not have public transport because neither the left nor the right actually wants to invest in that. The one wants to build roads, the other want to complain about building road. And here we are, no tram anywhere in Auckland – just been there today, nary a bus to see, the trains seem all being worked on, and well it was quite depressing actually.
And hiring cars costs money, it is actually cheaper to have a non warrented non rego'ed car that one brings out when they need to go to town and cop the fine, specially when poor. If you even have a rental company anywhere near you to get too to pick up your car. Mind, a poor person could always walk there after all they have time to waste, right?
But yeah, just another region of NZ that don't need roads, nor trains, just rent a car, the same car that the left believes the poor won't be driving soon and that will be banned cause fossil fuels.
As for electric cars not being 'fossil fuel' dependent, what do you think electricity is? Where does that magic juice comes from? How do you recycle the batteries? What about the fossilfuel spend to create the car and the batteries and the shipping to our far flung corners? Oh yeah, thats cool and good pollution cause some rich guy can afford a car that makes him feel so green.
And after living in Vienna (Euro365/year for bus/train/tram within the city limits) & and travelling around Europe car-free for eight years and bugger-all money, and trying to do the same in Wellington (now we're home) – NZ is ruined, it's a transport nightmare. Absolutely pathetic, it's like people cannot see an alternative. We've seen NZers on Danube cruises and city-to-city trains who rave about the experience and then 'oh no, we can't do that in NZ, it's not our way.'
City-to-city by train $60 there and hundreds of dollars here, Wellington to Auckland by rail is twice the price of flying.
But of course, I'm elitest.
(otoh public transport is only for poor people) I give up.
This time it's a 4 lane motorway (second tunnel under Mount Victoria – yeah toll free) to the airport and eastern suburbs (instead of a light rail system within Wellington and via a tunnel to the east, something users would pay for).
National's obsession with roads frankly goes beyond just a blinkered and antedeluvian world view and veers hard towards outright cronyism and culture war nihilism.
They are still largely unchallenged in MSM over allowing heavier trucks on the roads – causing cracking and then the later potholes with the rain (and they did this while reducing funding for road maintenance).
And the poseurs then this year announce a pothole fund policy to deal with the mess they caused, as if they have the answers.
In 1847 (20 years before New Zealand’s Native Schools Act) a British government report into Welsh linked the language to stupidity, sexual promiscuity and unruly behavior, prompting a drive to remove the language from local schools.
So the historical trend into monoculture was a result of imperialism.
This led to the notorious punishment known as the Welsh Nots. These were planks of wood with the initials W.N. on them that would be hung around the necks of students caught speaking the language in school.
James Griffiths, author of Speak Not: Empire, Identity and the Politics of Languageand a former CNN journalist, said Wales was a prime example of how sound policies could revive a native language, but he noted that, as in New Zealand, there had been resistance from some quarters.
“I think for a lot of people, if they speak the language of the majority, they don’t appreciate the type of recognition and representation of having it on road signs,” he said. Across the Irish Sea, bilingual signs bearing both Irish Gaelic and English have existed in the Republic of Ireland dating back to the start of the 20th century.
Whereas the trend towards inclusion is good politics, there's a problem with impact on driver cognition that has design implications:
Research by the University of Leeds suggests road signs consisting of four lines, or more, are likely to slow drivers’ response time significantly.
You may need to pull over & stop to read the sign for this place…
Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateaturipukakapikimaungahoronukupokaiwhenuakitanatahu, a hill near Hawke’s Bay which prides itself as the world’s longest place name.
Alternatives to the msm are helpful. This one seems to have emerged from an aussie university: https://360info.org/about-us/
360 operates as a “wire agency” supplying contextual and explanatory news features ready-for-publication on other publisher’s outlets at no cost under Creative Commons.
It provides this review of China's BRI: The future of the Belt and Road Initiative is uncertain, but regional cooperation could secure its future.
China now navigates an inward-looking economic policy, and the outcomes of this reassessment will shape not only Belt and Road infrastructure projects but the economic and geopolitical landscape in the Pacific and beyond.
China would need to proffer a Taiwan within China deal, reassure ASEAN as to the SCS atolls being claimed as islands, and assist with a Korean Peninsular peace (guarantee South Korean security and thus allowing US forces to leave) to gain Japanese and Korean confidence.
Then there is this. Italy wondering about how to withdraw.
Labour is proposing a change to its rent to buy scheme.
The Government has tweaked its rent-to-buy type schemes for first home buyers, opening it up for existing homes and not just new builds.
About time.
Housing Minister Megan Woods announced on Sunday the progressive home ownership scheme – where the Government helps first home buyers through rent-to-buy, leasehold, and shared equity arrangements – would be opened up to existing homes for buyers, with an increased income cap of $150,000.
Rising wages since 2020.
The $400 million progressive home ownership scheme was started in 2020 with the aim of helping low-to-median income households, particularly Māori and Pacific whānau with children, who might lack a sufficient deposit or financial support for a deposit, into their first home.
The Government is also “increasing the flexibility” and speed of the application process, and extending the timeframe that rent-to-buy of shared equity schemes have to be paid off by from 15 to 20 years.
This is hardly surprising given the increasing cost of new builds since 2020.
Now, if only they would do an adjustment to Kiwibuild and allow those owning flats and apartments to buy (those seeking better quality or a small family home) or those empty nesters downsizing (to encourage this path to quality new builds). This would help provide impetus to the wider construction market.
How or when will this car dependency end? Seemingly never. Well, not while morons are still planning to build 4 lane "highways".
We must get Rail back on track !
As late as 2002, services operated between Auckland and Hamilton, Tauranga and Rotorua, Wellington and Napier, as well as Christchurch and Invercargill.
20 years later just a handful remain and New Zealand is one of the most car-dependent countries in the world.
I don't know about trying to restore regional rail. it's been run down for almost fifty years now. My view is we should start with a clean sheet of paper, build a standard gauge high speed electric rail network in the above mentioned Whangarei to Tauranga route, and then expand that South over 20-40 years. Then, a spur to Rotorua. Then to Taupo and from Wellington to Palmerston North. Then complete the link between Palmerston and Taupo. Then maybe an East Coast link, Palmerston North-Napier-Gisborne-Whakatane-Rotorua.
In the South Island, the maintrunk from a new ferry port at Clifford Bay to Christchurch. Forget about the rest of the old narrow gauge network.
The small populations and lack of economic dynamism makes modern rail hard to justify south of Hamilton except on the hope of induced demand and I can't imagine you'd ever come up with a good case to spend the money required ofor upgrade rail in Otago/Southland.
Far better accept the dynamic “virtuous circle” of growth in NZ will occur north of Taupo, and aim to create a zone with good, high-skilled jobs, a large, skilled population, and good communications that will attract more private investment and new, high-skilled jobs. Leave Otago and Southland to the penguins, fur seals and Royal Albatrosses.
National's default policy position: build more roads.
That's all you get from National.
Shameless populist vote buying, so their mates can drive their Ford Rangers at 130 km/hr between Whangarei and Auckland along ludicrously expensive King's highways.
Who will pay for that?
The poor, the homeless, the hungry and the sick.
National's pandering to the Kiwi car culture for votes at the expense of the general welfare of the country is the product of calculated minds who don't give a f.. about anything but the buzz of power.
They should be ashamed of themselves, but being National they will think they are the best thing since sliced bread.
About a month ago Jack was on here claiming that National had released their tax policy. When I pointed out that was incorrect, and (politely) asked for a link to this policy, Jack resorted to abuse.
That doesn't bother me, but deliberate misinformation does. Where is National's tax policy, Jack?
You'll see a nice aerial view of the Ivon Watkins-Dow plant in 2001. Demolition was completed earlier this year and all those buildings within that large green-belt quadrangle are now gone. Just below the bottom of the picture is the Tasman coastline. I live in that fringe suburb above the top right corner, less than 300m from the boundary, but I'm not paranoid about any contamination.
After months wondering why developers haven't moved in to start subdivision of what could become a highly-prized market opportunity, I've gleaned that the NPDC isn't satisfied with the owner's decontamination process, so the thing has stalled.
Meanwhile this report suggests things are even murkier for locals closely affected.
Jimmy Stoppard grew up on Marama Crescent in Paritūtū, and later worked at the IDW agrichemicals plant. His mother Susan Stoppard Raynor recorded the highest level of dioxin exposure in the 2005 study. But she was incorrectly grouped as a long-term resident, despite living in Paritūtū for just seven years. Stoppard feared the study's results had been skewed by wrong information about his mother and others who lived in the area in the 1960s.
Can't do basic science if you fudge the data. Gross negligence? Anyone ought to be able to grasp that the period of exposure is proportional to the effects, right? Should public health officials be deemed to thick to grasp that principle? No. How come they don't just get it right? Pandemic, obviously. The universal feeble excuse.
I would expect that they were representing constituents, voting in Parliament, sitting on Parliamentary committees, dealing with constituent problems and local issues.
If they were National MPs they'd be finding potholes, mingling with anti-mandate protesters, putting up protest hoardings, putting out press releases and newsletters full of words like "shambles", "crisis" and "woke".
People often complain there are too many MPs, but under our system there is no other talent pool for Cabinet. We can't create peers (UK) or appoint Senators (Australia) or other officials (USA). New Zealand is unusual in that regard.
The first MMP government (National – NZ First) was an object lesson in what can go wrong if jobs outnumber available talent.
Trainer wheels cabinet ministers who we haven’t seen, have no profile and who are going to lose their seats anyway?
Could at least have been some guest posts for the Standard expressing their political philosophy or political goals if those are allowed in the Labour Party these days…
@Mac yep all NaCT backbench stuff. What’s the Labour alternative? It seems like a lot of wasted opportunity at the moment.
The Labour alternative is to understand that potholes not on SH1 are the responsibility of the local authority, not the government; that anti-mandate protesters who deny the power of the police, the courts and reason are dangerously deluded; that protest hoardings that call for the banning of something that does not exist are in similar intellectual territory; that words used wrongly and overused lose their meaning; and finally that 'woke' is a term of praise.
Salvation Army’s State of the Nation 2025 report highlights falling living standards, the highest unemployment rates since the 1990s and half of all Pacific children going without food. There are reports of hundreds if not thousands of people are applying for the same jobs in the wake of last year’s ...
Mountain Tui is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Correction: On the article The Condundrum of David Seymour, Luke Malpass conducted joint reviews with Bryce Wilkinson, the architect of the Regulatory Standards Bill - not Bryce Edwards. The article ...
Tomorrow the council’s Transport, Resilience and Infrastructure Committee meet and agenda has a few interesting papers. Council’s Letter of Expectation to Auckland Transport Every year the council provide a Letter of Expectation to Auckland Transport which is part of the process for informing AT of the council’s priorities and ...
All around in my home townThey're trying to track me down, yeahThey say they want to bring me in guiltyFor the killing of a deputyFor the life of a deputySongwriter: Robert Nesta Marley.Support Nick’s Kōrero today with a 20% discount on a paid subscription to receive all my newsletters directly ...
Hi,I think all of us have probably experienced the power of music — that strange, transformative thing that gets under our skin and helps us experience this whole life thing with some kind of sanity.Listening and experiencing music has always been such a huge part of my life, and has ...
Business frustration over the stalled economy is growing, and only 34% of voters are confidentNicola Willis can deliver. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, February 12 are:Business frustration is growing about a ...
I have now lived long enough to see a cabinet minister go both barrels on their Prime Minister and not get sacked.It used to be that the PM would have a drawer full of resignations signed by ministers on the day of their appointment, ready for such an occasion. But ...
This session will feature Simon McCallum, Senior Lecturer in Engineering and Computer Science (VUW) and recent Labour Party candidate in the Southland Electorate talking about some of the issues around AI and how this should inform Labour Party policy. Simon is an excellent speaker with a comprehensive command of AI ...
The proposed Waimate garbage incinerator is dead: The company behind a highly-controversial proposal to build a waste-to-energy plant in the Waimate District no longer has the land. [...] However, SIRRL director Paul Taylor said the sales and purchase agreement to purchase land from Murphy Farms, near Glenavy, lapsed at ...
The US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act has been a vital tool in combatting international corruption. It forbids US companies and citizens from bribing foreign public officials anywhere in the world. And its actually enforced: some of the world's biggest companies - Siemens, Hewlett Packard, and Bristol Myers Squibb - have ...
December 2024 photo - with UK Tory Boris Johnson (Source: Facebook)Those PollsFor hours, political poll results have resounded across political hallways and commentary.According to the 1News Verizon poll, 50% of the country believe we are heading in the “wrong direction”, while 39% believe we are “on the right track”.The left ...
A Tai Rāwhiti mill that ran for 30 years before it was shut down in late 2023 is set to re-open in the coming months, which will eventually see nearly 300 new jobs in the region. A new report from Massey University shows that pensioners are struggling with rising costs. ...
As support continues to fall, Luxon also now faces his biggest internal ructions within the coalition since the election, with David Seymour reacting badly to being criticised by the PM. File photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate ...
Not since 1988 when Richard Prebble openly criticised David Lange have we seen such a challenge to a Prime Minister as that of David Seymour to Christopher Luxon last night. Prebble suggested Lange had mental health issues during a TV interview and was almost immediately fired. Seymour hasn’t gone quite ...
Three weeks in, and the 24/7 news cycle is not helping anyone feel calm and informed about the second Trump presidency. One day, the US is threatening 25% trade tariffs on its friends and neighbours. The reasons offered by the White House are absurd, such as stopping fentanyl coming in ...
This video includes personal musings and conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). Wherever you look, you'll hear headlines claiming we've passed 1.5 degrees of global warming. And while 2024 saw ...
Photo by Heather M. Edwards on UnsplashHere’s the key news, commentary, reports and debate around Aotearoa’s politics and economy in the week to Feb 10 below. That’s ahead of live chats on the Substack App and The Kākā’s front page on Substack at 5pm with: on his column in The ...
Is there anyone in the world the National Party loves more than a campaign donor? Why yes, there is! They will always have the warmest hello and would you like to slip into something more comfortable for that great god of our age, the High Net Worth Individual.The words the ...
Waste and fraud certainly exist in foreign aid programs, but rightwing celebration of USAID’s dismantling shows profound ignorance of the value of soft power (as opposed to hard power) in projecting US influence and interests abroad by non-military/coercive means (think of “hearts and minds,” “hugs, not bullets,” “honey versus vinegar,” ...
Health New Zealand is proposing to cut almost half of its data and digital positions – more than 1000 of them. The PSA has called on the Privacy Commissioner to urgently investigate the cuts due to the potential for serious consequences for patients. NZNO is calling for an urgent increase ...
We may see a few more luxury cars on Queen Street, but a loosening of rules to entice rich foreigners to invest more here is unlikely to “turbocharge our economic growth”. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate ...
Let us not dance daintily around the elephant in the room. Our politicians who serve us in the present are not honest, certainly not as honest as they should be, and while the right are taking out most of the trophies for warping narratives and literally redefining “facts”, the kiwi ...
A few weeks ago I took a look at public transport ridership in 2024. In today’s post I’m going to be looking a bit deeper at bus ridership. Buses make up the vast majority of ridership in Auckland with 70 million boardings last year out of a total of 89.4 ...
Oh, you know I did itIt's over and I feel fineNothing you could say is gonna change my mindWaited and I waited the longest nightNothing like the taste of sweet declineSongwriters: Chris Shiflett / David Eric Grohl / Nate Mendel / Taylor Hawkins.Hindsight is good, eh?The clarity when the pieces ...
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on UnsplashHere’s what we’re watching in the week to February 16 and beyond in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty:Monday, February 10The Kākā’s weekly wrap-up of news about politics and the economy is due at midday, followed by webinar for paying subscribers in Substack’s ...
A listing of 23 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, February 2, 2025 thru Sat, February 8, 2025. This week's roundup is again published soleley by category. We are still interested in feedback to hone the categorization, so if ...
Today, I stumbled across a Twitter Meme: the ending of The Lord of the Rings as a Chess scenario: https://x.com/mellon_heads/status/1887983845917564991 It gets across the basic gist. Aragorn and Gandalf offering up ‘material’ at the Morannon allows Frodo and Samwise to catch Sauron unawares – fair enough. But there are a ...
Last week, Kieran McAnulty called out Chris Bishop and Nicola Willis for their claims that Kāinga Ora’s costs were too high.They had claimed Kāinga Ora’s cost were 12% higher than market i.e. private devlopersBut Kāinga Ora’s Chair had already explained why last year:"We're not building to sell, so we'll be ...
Stuff’s Political Editor Luke Malpass - A Fellow at New Zealand IniativeLast week I half-joked that Stuff / The Post’s Luke Malpass1 always sounded like he was auditioning for a job at the New Zealand Initiative.Mountain Tui is a reader-supported publication. For a limited time, subscriptions are 20% off. Thanks ...
At a funeral on Friday, there were A4-sized photos covering every wall of the Dil’s reception lounge. There must have been 200 of them, telling the story in the usual way of the video reel but also, by enlargement, making it more possible to linger and step in.Our friend Nicky ...
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 from the Gigafact team in collaboration with members from our team. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Is methane the ...
The Government’s idea is that the private sector and Community Housing Providers will fund, build and operate new affordable housing to address our housing crisis. Meanwhile, the Government does not know where almost half of the 1,700 children who left emergency housing actually went. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong ...
Oh, home, let me come homeHome is wherever I'm with youOh, home, let me come homeHome is wherever I'm with youSongwriters: Alexander Ebert / Jade Allyson CastrinosMorena,I’m on a tight time frame this morning. In about an hour and a half, I’ll need to pack up and hit the road ...
This is a post about the Mountain Tui substack, and small tweaks - further to the poll and request post the other day. Please don’t read if you aren’t interested in my personal matters. Thank you all.After oohing-and-aahing about how to structure the Substack model since November, including obtaining ...
This transcript of a recent conversation between the Prime Minister and his chief economic adviser has not been verified.We’ve announced we are the ‘Yes Government’. Do you like it?Yes, Prime Minister.Dreamed up by the PR team. It’s about being committed to growth. Not that the PR team know anything about ...
The other day, Australian Senator Nick McKim issued a warning in the Australian Parliement about the US’s descent into fascim.And of course it’s true, but I lament - that was true as soon as Trump won.What we see is now simply the reification of the intention, planning, and forces behind ...
Among the many other problems associated with Musk/DOGE sending a fleet of teenage and twenty-something cultists to remove, copy and appropriate federal records like social security, medicaid and other supposedly protected data is the fact that the youngsters doing the data-removal, copying and security protocol and filter code over-writing have ...
Jokerman dance to the nightingale tuneBird fly high by the light of the moonOh, oh, oh, JokermanSong by Bob Dylan.Morena folks, I hope this fine morning of the 7th of February finds you well. We're still close to Paihia, just a short drive out of town. Below is the view ...
It’s been an eventful week as always, so here’s a few things that we have found interesting. We also hope everyone had a happy and relaxing Waitangi Day! This week in Greater Auckland We’re still running on summer time, but provided two chewy posts: On Tuesday, a guest ...
Queuing on Queen St: the Government is set to announce another apparently splashy growth policy on Sunday of offering residence visas to wealthy migrants. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Friday, February 7:PM Christopher ...
The fact that Waitangi ended up being such a low-key affair may mark it out as one of the most significant Waitangi Days in recent years. A group of women draped in “Toitu Te Tiriti” banners who turned their backs on the politicians’ powhiri was about as rough as it ...
Hi,This week’s Flightless Bird episode was about “fake seizure guy” — a Melbourne man who fakes seizures in order to get members of the public to sit on him.The audio documentary (which I have included in this newsletter in case you don’t listen to Flightless Bird) built on reporting first ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Karin Kirk The 119th Congress comes with a price tag. The oil and gas industry gave about $24 million in campaign contributions to the members of the U.S. House and Senate expected to be sworn in January 3, 2025, according to a ...
Early morning, the shadows still long, but you can already feel the warmth building. Our motel was across the road from the historic homestead where Henry Williams' family lived. The evening before, we wandered around the gardens, reading the plaques and enjoying the close proximity to the history of the ...
Thanks folks for your feedback, votes and comments this week. I’ll be making the changes soon. Appreciate all your emails, comments and subscriptions too. I know your time is valuable - muchas gracias.A lot is happening both here and around the world - so I want to provide a snippets ...
Data released today by Statistics NZ shows that unemployment rose to 5.1%, with 33,000 more people out of work than last year said NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi Economist Craig Renney. “The latest data shows that employment fell in Aotearoa at its fastest rate since the GFC. Unemployment rose in 8 ...
The December labour market statistics have been released, showing yet another increase in unemployment. There are now 156,000 unemployed - 34,000 more than when National took office. And having thrown all these people out of work, National is doubling down on cruelty. Because being vicious will somehow magically create the ...
Boarded up homes in Kilbirnie, where work on a planned development was halted. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, February 5 are;Housing Minister Chris Bishop yesterday announcedKāinga Ora would be stripped of ...
This week Kiwirail and Auckland Transport were celebrating the completion of the summer rail works that had the network shut or for over a month and the start of electric trains to Pukekohe. First up, here’s parts of the press release about the shutdown works. Passengers boarding trains in Auckland ...
Through its austerity measures, the coalition government has engineered a rise in unemployment in order to reduce inflation while – simultaneously – cracking down harder and harder on the people thrown out of work by its own policies. To that end, Social Development Minister Louise Upston this week added two ...
This year, we've seen a radical, white supremacist government ignoring its Tiriti obligations, refusing to consult with Māori, and even trying to legislatively abrogate te Tiriti o Waitangi. When it was criticised by the Waitangi Tribunal, the government sabotaged that body, replacing its legal and historical experts with corporate shills, ...
Poor old democracy, it really is in a sorry state. It would be easy to put all the blame on the vandals and tyrants presently trashing the White House, but this has been years in the making. It begins with Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan and the spirit of Gordon ...
The new school lunches came in this week, and they were absolutely scrumptious.I had some, and even though Connor said his tasted like “stodge” and gave him a sore tummy, I myself loved it!Look at the photos - I knew Mr Seymour wouldn’t lie when he told us last year:"It ...
The tighter sanctions are modelled on ones used in Britain, which did push people off ‘the dole’, but didn’t increase the number of workers, and which evidence has repeatedly shown don’t work. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, ...
Catching you up on the morning’s global news and a quick look at the parallels -GLOBALTariffs are backSharemarkets in the US, UK and Europe have “plunged” in response to Trump’s tariffs. And while Mexico has won a one month reprieve, Canada and China will see their respective 25% and 10% ...
This post by Nicolas Reid was originally published on Linked in. It is republished here with permission. Gondolas are often in the news, with manufacturers of ropeway systems proposing them as a modern option for mass transit systems in New Zealand. However, like every next big thing in transport, it’s hard ...
This is a re-post from The Climate BrinkBoth 2023 and 2024 were exceptionally warm years, at just below and above 1.5C relative to preindustrial in the WMO composite of surface temperature records, respectively. While we are still working to assess the full set of drivers of this warmth, it is clear that ...
Hi,I woke up feeling nervous this morning, realising that this weekend Flightless Bird is going to do it’s first ever live show. We’re heading to a sold out (!) show in Seattle to test the format out in front of an audience. If it works, we’ll do more. I want ...
From the United-For-Now States of America comes the thrilling news that a New Zealander may be at the very heart of the current coup. Punching above our weight on the world stage once more! Wait, you may be asking, what New Zealander? I speak of Peter Thiel, made street legal ...
Even Stevens: Over the 33 years between 1990 and 2023 (and allowing for the aberrant 2020 result) the average level of support enjoyed by the Left and Right blocs, at roughly 44.5 percent each, turns out to be, as near as dammit, identical.WORLDWIDE, THE PARTIES of the Left are presented ...
Back in 2023, a "prominent political figure" went on trial for historic sex offences. But we weren't allowed to know who they were or what political party they were "prominent" in, because it might affect the way we voted. At the time, I said that this was untenable; it was ...
I'm going, I'm goingWhere the water tastes like wineI'm going where the water tastes like wineWe can jump in the waterStay drunk all the timeI'm gonna leave this city, got to get awayI'm gonna leave this city, got to get awayAll this fussing and fighting, man, you know I sure ...
Waitangi Day is a time to honour Te Tiriti o Waitangi and stand together for a just and fair Aotearoa. Across the motu, communities are gathering to reflect, kōrero, and take action for a future built on equity and tino rangatiratanga. From dawn ceremonies to whānau-friendly events, there are ...
Subscribe to Mountain Tūī ! Where you too can learn about exciting things from a flying bird! Tweet.Yes - I absolutely suck at marketing. It’s a fact.But first -My question to all readers is:How should I set up the Substack model?It’s been something I’ve been meaning to ask since November ...
Here’s the key news, commentary, reports and debate around Aotearoa’s political economy on politics and in the week to Feb 3:PM Christopher Luxon began 2025’s first day of Parliament last Tuesday by carrying on where left off in 2024, letting National’s junior coalition partner set the political agenda and dragging ...
The PSA have released a survey of 4000 public service workers showing that budget cuts are taking a toll on the wellbeing of public servants and risking the delivery of essential services to New Zealanders. Economists predict that figures released this week will show continued increases in unemployment, potentially reaching ...
The Prime Minister’s speech 10 days or so ago kicked off a flurry of commentary. No one much anywhere near the mainstream (ie excluding Greens supporters) questioned the rhetoric. New Zealand has done woefully poorly on productivity for a long time and we really need better outcomes, and the sorts ...
President Trump on the day he announced tariffs against Mexico, Canada and China, unleashing a shock to supply chains globally that is expected to slow economic growth and increase inflation for most large economies. Photo: Getty ImagesLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, climate ...
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on UnsplashHere’s what we’re watching in the week to February 9 and beyond in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty:Monday, February 3Politics: New Zealand Government cabinet meeting usually held early afternoon with post-cabinet news conference possible at 4 pm, although they have not been ...
The Salvation Army’s State of the Nation report is a bleak indictment on the failure of Government to take steps to end poverty, with those on benefits, including their children, hit hardest. ...
New Zealand First has today introduced a Member’s Bill which would restore decision-making power to local communities regarding the fluoridation of drinking water. The ‘Fluoridation (Referendum) Legislation Bill’ seeks to repeal the Health (Fluoridation of Drinking Water) Amendment Act 2021 that granted centralised authority to the Direct General of Health ...
New Zealand First has introduced a Member’s Bill aimed at preventing banks from refusing their services to businesses because of the current “Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Framework”. “This Bill ensures fairness and prevents ESG standards from perpetuating woke ideology in the banking sector being driven by unelected, globalist, climate ...
Erica Stanford has reached peak shortsightedness if today’s announcement is anything to go by, picking apart immigration settings piece by piece to the detriment of the New Zealand economy. ...
Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. The intention was to establish a colony with the cession of sovereignty to the Crown, ...
Te Whatu Ora Chief Executive Margie Apa leaving her job four months early is another symptom of this government’s failure to deliver healthcare for New Zealanders. ...
The Green Party is calling for the Prime Minister to show leadership and be unequivocal about Aotearoa New Zealand’s opposition to a proposal by the US President to remove Palestinians from Gaza. ...
The latest unemployment figures reveal that job losses are hitting Māori and Pacific people especially hard, with Māori unemployment reaching a staggering 9.7% for the December 2024 quarter and Pasifika unemployment reaching 10.5%. ...
Waitangi 2025: Waitangi Day must be community and not politically driven - Shane Jones Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. ...
Despite being confronted every day with people in genuine need being stopped from accessing emergency housing – National still won’t commit to building more public houses. ...
The Green Party says the Government is giving up on growing the country’s public housing stock, despite overwhelming evidence that we need more affordable houses to solve the housing crisis. ...
Before any thoughts of the New Year and what lies ahead could even be contemplated, New Zealand reeled with the tragedy of Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming losing her life. For over 38 years she had faithfully served as a front-line Police officer. Working alongside her was Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson will return to politics at Waitangi on Monday the 3rd of February where she will hold a stand up with fellow co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick. ...
Te Pāti Māori is appalled by the government's blatant mishandling of the school lunch programme. David Seymour’s ‘cost-saving’ measures have left tamariki across Aotearoa with unidentifiable meals, causing distress and outrage among parents and communities alike. “What’s the difference between providing inedible food, and providing no food at all?” Said ...
The Government is doubling down on outdated and volatile fossil fuels, showing how shortsighted and destructive their policies are for working New Zealanders. ...
Green Party MP Steve Abel this morning joined Coromandel locals in Waihi to condemn new mining plans announced by Shane Jones in the pit of the town’s Australian-owned Gold mine. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to strengthen its just-announced 2030-2035 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement and address its woeful lack of commitment to climate security. ...
Today marks a historic moment for Taranaki iwi with the passing of the Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill in Parliament. "Today, we stand together as descendants of Taranaki, and our tūpuna, Taranaki Maunga, is now formally acknowledged by the law as a living tūpuna. ...
Labour is relieved to see Children’s Minister Karen Chhour has woken up to reality and reversed her government’s terrible decisions to cut funding from frontline service providers – temporarily. ...
It is the first week of David Seymour’s school lunch programme and already social media reports are circulating of revolting meals, late deliveries, and mislabelled packaging. ...
The Green Party says that with no-cause evictions returning from today, the move to allow landlords to end tenancies without reason plunges renters, and particularly families who rent, into insecurity and stress. ...
The Government’s move to increase speed limits substantially on dozens of stretches of rural and often undivided highways will result in more serious harm. ...
In her first announcement as Economic Growth Minister, Nicola Willis chose to loosen restrictions for digital nomads from other countries, rather than focus on everyday Kiwis. ...
The Government’s commitment to get New Zealand’s roads back on track is delivering strong results, with around 98 per cent of potholes on state highways repaired within 24 hours of identification every month since targets were introduced, Transport Minister Chris Bishop says. “Increasing productivity to help rebuild our economy is ...
The former Cadbury factory will be the site of the Inpatient Building for the new Dunedin Hospital and Health Minister Simeon Brown says actions have been taken to get the cost overruns under control. “Today I am giving the people of Dunedin certainty that we will build the new Dunedin ...
From today, Plunket in Whāngarei will be offering childhood immunisations – the first of up to 27 sites nationwide, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. The investment of $1 million into the pilot, announced in October 2024, was made possible due to the Government’s record $16.68 billion investment in health. It ...
New Zealand’s strong commitment to the rights of disabled people has continued with the response to an important United Nations report, Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston has announced. Of the 63 concluding observations of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), 47 will be progressed ...
Resources Minister Shane Jones has launched New Zealand’s national Minerals Strategy and Critical Minerals List, documents that lay a strategic and enduring path for the mineral sector, with the aim of doubling exports to $3 billion by 2035. Mr Jones released the documents, which present the Coalition Government’s transformative vision ...
Firstly I want to thank OceanaGold for hosting our event today. Your operation at Waihi is impressive. I want to acknowledge local MP Scott Simpson, local government dignitaries, community stakeholders and all of you who have gathered here today. It’s a privilege to welcome you to the launch of the ...
Racing Minister, Winston Peters has announced the Government is preparing public consultation on GST policy proposals which would make the New Zealand racing industry more competitive. “The racing industry makes an important economic contribution. New Zealand thoroughbreds are in demand overseas as racehorses and for breeding. The domestic thoroughbred industry ...
Business confidence remains very high and shows the economy is on track to improve, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis says. “The latest ANZ Business Outlook survey, released yesterday, shows business confidence and expected own activity are ‘still both very high’.” The survey reports business confidence fell eight points to +54 ...
Enabling works have begun this week on an expanded radiology unit at Hawke’s Bay Fallen Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital which will double CT scanning capacity in Hawke’s Bay to ensure more locals can benefit from access to timely, quality healthcare, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. This investment of $29.3m in the ...
The Government has today announced New Zealand’s second international climate target under the Paris Agreement, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand will reduce emissions by 51 to 55 per cent compared to 2005 levels, by 2035. “We have worked hard to set a target that is both ambitious ...
Nine years of negotiations between the Crown and iwi of Taranaki have concluded following Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/the Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill passing its third reading in Parliament today, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “This Bill addresses the historical grievances endured by the eight iwi ...
As schools start back for 2025, there will be a relentless focus on teaching the basics brilliantly so all Kiwi kids grow up with the knowledge, skills and competencies needed to grow the New Zealand of the future, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “A world-leading education system is a key ...
Housing Minister Chris Bishop and Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson have welcomed Kāinga Ora’s decision to re-open its tender for carpets to allow wool carpet suppliers to bid. “In 2024 Kāinga Ora issued requests for tender (RFTs) seeking bids from suppliers to carpet their properties,” Mr Bishop says. “As part ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today visited Otahuhu College where the new school lunch programme has served up healthy lunches to students in the first days of the school year. “As schools open in 2025, the programme will deliver nutritious meals to around 242,000 students, every school day. On ...
Minister for Children Karen Chhour has intervened in Oranga Tamariki’s review of social service provider contracts to ensure Barnardos can continue to deliver its 0800 What’s Up hotline. “When I found out about the potential impact to this service, I asked Oranga Tamariki for an explanation. Based on the information ...
A bill to make revenue collection on imported and exported goods fairer and more effective had its first reading in Parliament, Customs Minister Casey Costello said today. “The Customs (Levies and Other Matters) Amendment Bill modernises the way in which Customs can recover the costs of services that are needed ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Department of Internal Affairs [the Department] has achieved significant progress in completing applications for New Zealand citizenship. “December 2024 saw the Department complete 5,661 citizenship applications, the most for any month in 2024. This is a 54 per cent increase compared ...
Reversals to Labour’s blanket speed limit reductions begin tonight and will be in place by 1 July, says Minister of Transport Chris Bishop. “The previous government was obsessed with slowing New Zealanders down by imposing illogical and untargeted speed limit reductions on state highways and local roads. “National campaigned on ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis has announced Budget 2025 – the Growth Budget - will be delivered on Thursday 22 May. “This year’s Budget will drive forward the Government’s plan to grow our economy to improve the incomes of New Zealanders now and in the years ahead. “Budget 2025 will build ...
For the Government, 2025 will bring a relentless focus on unleashing the growth we need to lift incomes, strengthen local businesses and create opportunity. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today laid out the Government’s growth agenda in his Statement to Parliament. “Just over a year ago this Government was elected by ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour welcomes students back to school with a call to raise attendance from last year. “The Government encourages all students to attend school every day because there is a clear connection between being present at school and setting yourself up for a bright future,” says Mr ...
The Government is relaxing visitor visa requirements to allow tourists to work remotely while visiting New Zealand, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis, Immigration Minister Erica Stanford and Tourism Minister Louise Upston say. “The change is part of the Government’s plan to unlock New Zealand’s potential by shifting the country onto ...
The opening of Kāinga Ora’s development of 134 homes in Epuni, Lower Hutt will provide much-needed social housing for Hutt families, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I’ve been a strong advocate for social housing on Kāinga Ora’s Epuni site ever since the old earthquake-prone housing was demolished in 2015. I ...
Trade and Investment Minister Todd McClay will travel to Australia today for meetings with Australian Trade Minister, Senator Don Farrell, and the Australia New Zealand Leadership Forum (ANZLF). Mr McClay recently hosted Minister Farrell in Rotorua for the annual Closer Economic Relations (CER) Trade Ministers’ meeting, where ANZLF presented on ...
A new monthly podiatry clinic has been launched today in Wairoa and will bring a much-needed service closer to home for the Wairoa community, Health Minister Simeon Brown says.“Health New Zealand has been successful in securing a podiatrist until the end of June this year to meet the needs of ...
The Judicial Conduct Commissioner has recommended a Judicial Conduct Panel be established to inquire into and report on the alleged conduct of acting District Court Judge Ema Aitken in an incident last November, Attorney-General Judith Collins said today. “I referred the matter of Judge Aitken’s alleged conduct during an incident ...
Students who need extra help with maths are set to benefit from a targeted acceleration programme that will give them more confidence in the classroom, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Last year, significant numbers of students did not meet the foundational literacy and numeracy level required to gain NCEA. To ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has announced three new diplomatic appointments. “Our diplomats play an important role in ensuring New Zealand’s interests are maintained and enhanced across the world,” Mr Peters says. “It is a pleasure to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and ...
Ki te kahore he whakakitenga, ka ngaro te Iwi – without a vision, the people will perish. The Government has achieved its target to reduce the number of households in emergency housing motels by 75 per cent five years early, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. The number of households ...
The opening of Palmerston North’s biggest social housing development will have a significant impact for whānau in need of safe, warm, dry housing, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. The minister visited the development today at North Street where a total of 50 two, three, and four-bedroom homes plus a ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced the new membership of the Public Advisory Committee on Disarmament and Arms Control (PACDAC), who will serve for a three-year term. “The Committee brings together wide-ranging expertise relevant to disarmament. We have made six new appointments to the Committee and reappointed two existing members ...
Ka nui te mihi kia koutou. Kia ora, good morning, talofa, malo e lelei, bula vinaka, da jia hao, namaste, sat sri akal, assalamu alaikum. It’s so great to be here and I’m ready and pumped for 2025. Can I start by acknowledging: Simon Bridges – CEO of the Auckland ...
The Government has unveiled a bold new initiative to position New Zealand as a premier destination for foreign direct investment (FDI) that will create higher paying jobs and grow the economy. “Invest New Zealand will streamline the investment process and provide tailored support to foreign investors, to increase capital investment ...
Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins today announced the largest reset of the New Zealand science system in more than 30 years with reforms which will boost the economy and benefit the sector. “The reforms will maximise the value of the $1.2 billion in government funding that goes into ...
Turbocharging New Zealand’s economic growth is the key to brighter days ahead for all Kiwis, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says. In the Prime Minister’s State of the Nation Speech in Auckland today, Christopher Luxon laid out the path to the prosperity that will affect all aspects of New Zealanders’ lives. ...
Human rights advocates must uphold human dignity, rights and justice, while rejecting the discriminatory tactics we oppose, writes Taimor Hazou.Two weeks ago the Palestinian Solidarity Network Aotearoa (PSNA) launched a campaign inviting New Zealanders to call a hotline if they suspected an Israel Defence Force (IDF) soldier that had ...
Immigration New Zealand figures shows more people have been looking at the ETA and visitor visa pages on the website, however fewer people have applied to come or to extend their stay. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kirsten Banks, Lecturer, School of Science, Computing and Engineering Technologies, Swinburne University of Technology Debris on the surface of Mars from the Perseverance mission, captured on April 19 2022. NASA/JPL-Caltech In his inauguration speech in January, United States President Donald Trump ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alix Woolard, Senior Research Fellow, The Kids Research Institute Australia Stock Unit/Shutterstock Have you ever asked someone how their day was, or been chatting casually with a friend, only to have them tell you a horrific story that has left you ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Quentin Grafton, Australian Laureate Professor of Economics, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University The Roper RiverChris Ison/Shutterstock Water is now a contested resource around the world. Nowhere is this more evident than in the fight playing out over the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Graeme Turner, Emeritus Professor of Cultural Studies, The University of Queensland Matej Kastellic/ Shutterstock As we head towards the federal election, both sides of politics are making a point of criticising universities and questioning their role in the community. ...
Alex Casey examines the perils of having your period at a music festival. It was right after Clairo’s swooning set that Sarah* knew it was time. She was on the second day of her period at Auckland’s Laneway festival, and braved the portaloos to empty her menstrual cup and change ...
A battle between health officials and local councils is heating up, as one government party seeks to change the rules. The Bulletin’s Stewart Sowman-Lund explains. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. ...
A global consultancy will lead the government's review of electricity markets, with a local firm offering advice and two groups of experts providing quality assurance. ...
New Public Service Minister Judith Collins is calling for a culture of saying 'yes', but being honest enough with ministers to "reconcile the vision with reality". ...
The future of nearly a third of all huts and tracks managed by the Department of Conservation is in limbo, as the agency faces a 30 percent shortfall in funding to maintain them. ...
Today I’ve had a bit on. I’m living in a 23.4 metre tug off the coast of Samoa and have been for a few weeks now. I’m on a top-secret mission to help save the planet from another potential environmental disaster.I’m currently tasked with looking out the window and making ...
The ‘loneliness epidemic’ is apparently spreading around the world, but what does it look like here in New Zealand? Rachel Judkins reports. It’s a beautiful summer evening in Cornwall Park, with families scattered on the grass and a live band playing a backing track to their laughter. Sprawled on a ...
The Act leader gets a telling-off from the principal and prime minister Christopher Luxon loses his cool in a heated question time. Echo Chamber is The Spinoff’s dispatch from the press gallery, recapping sessions in the House. Columns are written by politics reporter Lyric Waiwiri-Smith and Wellington editor Joel MacManus. ...
The High Court isn’t the appropriate place to solve a South Island iwi’s claims over freshwater, the Crown says.Ngāi Tahu leaders, and the collective Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu, are taking legal action against the Attorney-General, demanding to be involved in decision-making over freshwater. Iwi want the Crown to recognise ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp');Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions.The post Newsroom daily quiz, Wednesday 12 February appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Opinion: It was the 10th anniversary of UNESCO’s International Day of Women and Girls in Science this week, the theme being ‘Unpacking STEM Careers: Her Voice in Science’. It is 2025, but we still need a lot more of her voices in science.In New Zealand, a 2021 survey found that ...
NewsroomBy Dr Jennifer Kruger and Dr Kelly Burrowes
A Government proposal to axe the only two jobs in New Zealand’s health sector of people who were working on a national strategy for palliative care has angered those in the sector, which is already under immense strain.It’s put another wedge between those who want terminally ill patients to live ...
COMMENTARY:By Sawsan Madina I watched US President Donald Trump’s joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week in utter disbelief. Not that the idea, or indeed the practice, of ethnic cleansing of Palestine is new. But at that press conference the mask has fallen. Recently, fascism ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Albanese government will on Wednesday announce it is willing, as a last resort, to purchase the collapsed Rex Airlines, in its latest bid to prop up aviation services to regional and remote areas. As ...
Jotham Napat has been elected as the new prime minister of Vanuatu. Napat was elected unopposed in Port Vila today, receiving 50 votes with two void votes. He is the country’s fifth prime minister in four years and will lead a coalition government made up of five political parties — ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By A J Brown, Professor of Public Policy & Law, Centre for Governance & Public Policy, Griffith University Australia has turned the corner on its decade-long slide on Transparency International’s annual Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), once again ranking in the top ten least ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nicole Bridges, Senior Lecturer in Public Relations and Director of Academic Program – Communication, Creative Industries, Screen Media, Western Sydney University Stock Rocket/Shutterstock For new parents struggling with challenges such as breastfeeding and sleep deprivation, social media can be a great ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Scott French, Senior Lecturer in Economics, UNSW Sydney US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese have stated an exemption for Australia from Trump’s executive order placing 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminium imported into the US is “under consideration”. ...
Analysis - Christopher Luxon's attempts to turn the tables back on the Opposition at Question Time today went down like a lead balloon, Jo Moir writes. ...
Nice obituary.
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
Congratulations, you are now on my moderation radar.
Read.
Anyone know when the next polls are out?
Roy Morgan usually at the start of the month, so maybe late this week? I haven’t seen a TV3 one for a while. With everything that is going on politically, will be interesting to see if any clear trends are emerging.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opinion_polling_for_the_2023_New_Zealand_general_election
It began in 2018
A National policy in 2020.
National and NZF are now proposing an alternative to the Brynderwyn hills route north, as it is flood prone.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/two-possible-bypass-routes-investigated-for-sh1-at-brynderwyn-hills-closed-for-weeks-after-summer-floods/Q2VAJUBJDRGN3C2VJGA3UULVOE/
I get it, costs and funding systems and all that. And Northerners won’t mind a toll tunnel at Brynderwyn they’ll be so happy to have it.Like the Puhoi tunnel.
But in Auckland, the Waterview tunnel? There’s no way Aucklanders would wear a toll.
And just like that you get to see why some Northlanders think they’re still being treated like dumb shits. The best part of 100 years of being playthings in games of politics. Simeon Brown or whoever the latest little message boy is can join the legion of Nation Party scumbags whose only real interest in Northland is getting a tick on a voting form.
I've been up north (Auckland to Mangonui) thrice in the last month. There is absolutely no need for any additional massive road building now the holiday highway has been opened. Incremental improvements are needed in Dome valley, and the Brynderwyns are a mess so it may be worth considering bypassing them to the east should climate events make that road no longer feasible.
If this proposal was for a high speed passenger (and freight) electrified rail corridor linking Whangarei-Auckland-Hamilton-Tauranga combined with a push to create a high productivity corridor alongside the rail then I'd be all in favour of it.
This !
NZ First wants to build a railway to Marsden Point from the Northern Main Trunk Line.
And also a dry-dock in Northport and move Ports of Auckland, while also moving the RNZ Navy to Northport from Devonport.
High speed rail to Northland makes very little sense as it is only a short distance and once there one would need to rent a car to get to the myriad townships and beaches that rail or daily public transport will never ever get to. The other consideration is that within the next decade almost all transport will be electric and any presumed fossil fuel saving benefits will no longer apply. France has a very good TGV and other rail systems but you see very few buses.
I've always thought drive on , drive off rail flat cars would be an idea that could save congestion, lives and emissions on highways and provide a relaxing, comfortable journey without the need for hire cars.
There are those types of wagons for cars on the Ghan and Indian Pacific trains, great for long distance travel without the hassle of driving. No reason why they shouldn't work over this side of the ditch.
You should go to cities then, the whole of the Cote d'azur Alpes Maritimes is connected with buses where you have no trains – mountainous areas for example. Cheap, effective, several times a day and evenings buses that go long distance.
Lived in France for over a decade, never owned a car, always lived rural.
And fwiw, look up the feat of building a tram in Nice, something that was done in short time, and the ticket was initially at a 1 euro and is now something 1.5 euros. By a conservative deputee no less. Not a single greeny came help.
NZ does not have public transport because neither the left nor the right actually wants to invest in that. The one wants to build roads, the other want to complain about building road. And here we are, no tram anywhere in Auckland – just been there today, nary a bus to see, the trains seem all being worked on, and well it was quite depressing actually.
And hiring cars costs money, it is actually cheaper to have a non warrented non rego'ed car that one brings out when they need to go to town and cop the fine, specially when poor. If you even have a rental company anywhere near you to get too to pick up your car. Mind, a poor person could always walk there after all they have time to waste, right?
But yeah, just another region of NZ that don't need roads, nor trains, just rent a car, the same car that the left believes the poor won't be driving soon and that will be banned cause fossil fuels.
As for electric cars not being 'fossil fuel' dependent, what do you think electricity is? Where does that magic juice comes from? How do you recycle the batteries? What about the fossilfuel spend to create the car and the batteries and the shipping to our far flung corners? Oh yeah, thats cool and good pollution cause some rich guy can afford a car that makes him feel so green.
Fuck that is just so tedious.
Totally agree. The Nice tram went in so fast!
And after living in Vienna (Euro365/year for bus/train/tram within the city limits) & and travelling around Europe car-free for eight years and bugger-all money, and trying to do the same in Wellington (now we're home) – NZ is ruined, it's a transport nightmare. Absolutely pathetic, it's like people cannot see an alternative. We've seen NZers on Danube cruises and city-to-city trains who rave about the experience and then 'oh no, we can't do that in NZ, it's not our way.'
City-to-city by train $60 there and hundreds of dollars here, Wellington to Auckland by rail is twice the price of flying.
But of course, I'm elitest.
(otoh public transport is only for poor people) I give up.
"…within the next decade almost all transport will be electric…"
yeah….nah.
This time it's a 4 lane motorway (second tunnel under Mount Victoria – yeah toll free) to the airport and eastern suburbs (instead of a light rail system within Wellington and via a tunnel to the east, something users would pay for).
National's obsession with roads frankly goes beyond just a blinkered and antedeluvian world view and veers hard towards outright cronyism and culture war nihilism.
Absolutely summed. Its a core belief obsession.
They are still largely unchallenged in MSM over allowing heavier trucks on the roads – causing cracking and then the later potholes with the rain (and they did this while reducing funding for road maintenance).
And the poseurs then this year announce a pothole fund policy to deal with the mess they caused, as if they have the answers.
How many of those new bridges national promised to build in northland…
.. actually got built..?
This motorway chimera might snag the biggest pile of electioneering bullshit award…
..(from/for the party (formerly) known as the tax cuts party..)
CNN reports on bilingual road signage, featuring this country along with Wales & Hawaii: https://edition.cnn.com/2023/07/29/asia/new-zealand-bilingual-road-signs-debate-intl-hnk-dst/index.html
So the historical trend into monoculture was a result of imperialism.
Whereas the trend towards inclusion is good politics, there's a problem with impact on driver cognition that has design implications:
You may need to pull over & stop to read the sign for this place…
Alternatives to the msm are helpful. This one seems to have emerged from an aussie university: https://360info.org/about-us/
It provides this review of China's BRI: The future of the Belt and Road Initiative is uncertain, but regional cooperation could secure its future.
China would need to proffer a Taiwan within China deal, reassure ASEAN as to the SCS atolls being claimed as islands, and assist with a Korean Peninsular peace (guarantee South Korean security and thus allowing US forces to leave) to gain Japanese and Korean confidence.
Then there is this. Italy wondering about how to withdraw.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-66354362
That 360 is a useful link/resource..
Labour is proposing a change to its rent to buy scheme.
About time.
Rising wages since 2020.
This is hardly surprising given the increasing cost of new builds since 2020.
Now, if only they would do an adjustment to Kiwibuild and allow those owning flats and apartments to buy (those seeking better quality or a small family home) or those empty nesters downsizing (to encourage this path to quality new builds). This would help provide impetus to the wider construction market.
The new hiway
Simple calc cost is 17 b not 6b
Distance 380
Based on the Tranmission gulley
27k, 1.2 b cost
How or when will this car dependency end? Seemingly never. Well, not while morons are still planning to build 4 lane "highways".
We must get Rail back on track !
I don't know about trying to restore regional rail. it's been run down for almost fifty years now. My view is we should start with a clean sheet of paper, build a standard gauge high speed electric rail network in the above mentioned Whangarei to Tauranga route, and then expand that South over 20-40 years. Then, a spur to Rotorua. Then to Taupo and from Wellington to Palmerston North. Then complete the link between Palmerston and Taupo. Then maybe an East Coast link, Palmerston North-Napier-Gisborne-Whakatane-Rotorua.
In the South Island, the maintrunk from a new ferry port at Clifford Bay to Christchurch. Forget about the rest of the old narrow gauge network.
No argument with Rail North. But meanwhile, heavy truck/trailers are rooting South Island roads.
Clifford Bay to ChCh could be a start…but we who are actually in the South need much more Rail service and use to put a stop to that.
Heres an Opinion piece from Duncan Connors.
While stating the case strongly for Dunedin..and our South Island IMO he has many valid points.
Duncan Connors, no mere enthusiast…he is also Senior Lecturer at University of Otago Business School
The small populations and lack of economic dynamism makes modern rail hard to justify south of Hamilton except on the hope of induced demand and I can't imagine you'd ever come up with a good case to spend the money required ofor upgrade rail in Otago/Southland.
Far better accept the dynamic “virtuous circle” of growth in NZ will occur north of Taupo, and aim to create a zone with good, high-skilled jobs, a large, skilled population, and good communications that will attract more private investment and new, high-skilled jobs. Leave Otago and Southland to the penguins, fur seals and Royal Albatrosses.
Did you even read Duncans article? Ok. Leave it at that…
National's default policy position: build more roads.
That's all you get from National.
Shameless populist vote buying, so their mates can drive their Ford Rangers at 130 km/hr between Whangarei and Auckland along ludicrously expensive King's highways.
Who will pay for that?
The poor, the homeless, the hungry and the sick.
National's pandering to the Kiwi car culture for votes at the expense of the general welfare of the country is the product of calculated minds who don't give a f.. about anything but the buzz of power.
They should be ashamed of themselves, but being National they will think they are the best thing since sliced bread.
Yet another week starts with National releasing policy and Labour again talking about themselves – today their party list.
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
About a month ago Jack was on here claiming that National had released their tax policy. When I pointed out that was incorrect, and (politely) asked for a link to this policy, Jack resorted to abuse.
That doesn't bother me, but deliberate misinformation does. Where is National's tax policy, Jack?
Public health controversy continues to swirl around my local dioxin site: https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/494823/ministry-of-health-cuts-access-to-flawed-data-in-paritutu-serum-dioxin-study
You'll see a nice aerial view of the Ivon Watkins-Dow plant in 2001. Demolition was completed earlier this year and all those buildings within that large green-belt quadrangle are now gone. Just below the bottom of the picture is the Tasman coastline. I live in that fringe suburb above the top right corner, less than 300m from the boundary, but I'm not paranoid about any contamination.
After months wondering why developers haven't moved in to start subdivision of what could become a highly-prized market opportunity, I've gleaned that the NPDC isn't satisfied with the owner's decontamination process, so the thing has stalled.
Meanwhile this report suggests things are even murkier for locals closely affected.
Can't do basic science if you fudge the data. Gross negligence? Anyone ought to be able to grasp that the period of exposure is proportional to the effects, right? Should public health officials be deemed to thick to grasp that principle? No. How come they don't just get it right? Pandemic, obviously. The universal feeble excuse.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300939162/live-the-day-in-politics-monday-july-31
Labour List is currently being released but a standalone link not available yet. To quote the top 60 from that link:
Here's a link
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/watch-live-labour-to-reveal-party-list-ahead-of-general-election/S4L45UXQFNDDFOI3JBFEEPTVP4/
What have the twenty extra MPs been doing for 3 years? Has there been any benefit to having this huge caucus?
I would expect that they were representing constituents, voting in Parliament, sitting on Parliamentary committees, dealing with constituent problems and local issues.
If they were National MPs they'd be finding potholes, mingling with anti-mandate protesters, putting up protest hoardings, putting out press releases and newsletters full of words like "shambles", "crisis" and "woke".
People often complain there are too many MPs, but under our system there is no other talent pool for Cabinet. We can't create peers (UK) or appoint Senators (Australia) or other officials (USA). New Zealand is unusual in that regard.
The first MMP government (National – NZ First) was an object lesson in what can go wrong if jobs outnumber available talent.
That’s it?
Trainer wheels cabinet ministers who we haven’t seen, have no profile and who are going to lose their seats anyway?
Could at least have been some guest posts for the Standard expressing their political philosophy or political goals if those are allowed in the Labour Party these days…
@Mac yep all NaCT backbench stuff. What’s the Labour alternative? It seems like a lot of wasted opportunity at the moment.
According to RNZ's Midday Sports News [@ 0:59 min], "New Zealand crushed Singapore"!
Crushed! Humiliated! Destroyed! – it's all good (entertainment), if a little juvenile.
The Labour alternative is to understand that potholes not on SH1 are the responsibility of the local authority, not the government; that anti-mandate protesters who deny the power of the police, the courts and reason are dangerously deluded; that protest hoardings that call for the banning of something that does not exist are in similar intellectual territory; that words used wrongly and overused lose their meaning; and finally that 'woke' is a term of praise.