Another mass leak of a law firm’s private information has occurred. And just like the Panama Papers the details are eye watering and show there are two classes of people on this planet, the uber rich and the rest of us.
The world’s biggest businesses, heads of state and global figures in politics, entertainment and sport who have sheltered their wealth in secretive tax havens are being revealed this week in a major new investigation into Britain’s offshore empires.
The details come from a leak of 13.4m files that expose the global environments in which tax abuses can thrive – and the complex and seemingly artificial ways the wealthiest corporations can legally protect their wealth.
The video of Panorama trying to interview Lord Ashcroft would be very funny if the whole situation was not so sad. Why do the really wealthy refuse to contribute to the collective good? After all they have more than enough to spare.
Lord Ashcroft will be well known to Standard readers. He seemed to have a rather cosy relationship with John Key. In this most networked of worlds it is not surprising that people who want to trash the state in the United Kingdom so they and their friends can have even more wealth are friendly with and supportive of people who want to trash the state in New Zealand so they and their friends can have even more wealth.
He was a peer of the House of Lords but was a foreigner in terms of his tax status. This meant that he only paid tax on UK earnings. How patriotic.
Another controversial entity mentioned in the Papers is Serco. But it appears that even law firms setting up structures to rob Sovereign Nations of tax have standards. Again from the Guardian:
Serco first approached Appleby through a London law firm on 1 September 2015, asking for help to “establish a subsidiary in Mauritius to acquire 49% of a company in Abu Dhabi”.
It would later use the Mauritius company solely to facilitate part of a major sale of its business interests in the Middle East and India.
Serco has flatly denied that the structure was used to help it avoid tax, and the Guardian is not suggesting the company acted unlawfully in any way.
The request prompted a flurry of activity within the Appleby compliance arm. The team began running its standard checks on the risks Serco could pose as a client.
The results were less than convincing. Appleby’s compliance team found what they described as a “history of blunders and controversies surrounding many of its contracts”, including through its involvement in Obamacare and the running of prisons in Australia and New Zealand.
“It has a history of problems, failures, fatal errors and overcharging,” a senior Appleby compliance officer wrote.
And Bernie Sanders has warned that the world is rapidly becoming an international oligarchy which is controlled by a tiny number of billionaires.
I suspect that the shock and horror from this release will be more subdued from that caused by the Panama Papers. Not because the sense of disgust was overplayed last time, but because this is become an increasingly apparent reality.
So what should progressives do? We are up against some of the cleverest and most well resourced people on the planet. But if we want sovereign nations to have a future then we have to sort this out.
And what is important? Brave policies enacted by a progressive Government.
Tax reform is complex and the wealthy will throw everything they have at it in the hope of stopping or watering it down. But the proposed tax review this Government will be setting up has just become even more important.
PS: I have seen a screenshot on twitter of a document claiming Malcolm Turnbull (Oz PM) gets a mention in the Paradise Papers, but I can’t find a link to any article on it.
Imagine NZ had no nation scale government. Just the local councils we’re familiar with. On a day to day basis local govt provides the vast majority of ordinary services that make life civilised, rubbish, roads, water, libraries, parks, building regulations, parking, animal and pest control … on and on. For ordinary people, whose lives are located in one place at a time, this scale of governance suffices for most of our needs.
But now, absent any governance on a national scale, how would all these small councils handle entities on a scale beyond their jurisdiction? Leaving aside obvious technical problems like providing national highways and transport, communications and the like … consider the problem of handling large companies that operate across multiple council districts. Consider individuals who make themselves resident in one town for tax purposes, but locate their assets in another which imposes little or no tax. Consider a company that rips off a client in Auckland, but is immune to redress because their offices are in Hamilton. Imagine how to deal with one town that pollutes for profit, and it’s neighbours who absorb the costs. And so on.
Such a scenario strikes us as absurd; dealing with these issues is exactly why we have a nation state.
But wait. If the entire human population of NZ was indeed just say, two small towns, imagine maybe Kaikohe and Gore. They were separated by days of travel, barely communicated and the few traders who operated between then did so on a basis of personal trust alone. Would we then need all the apparatus of a nation state? Well no, we would think it an absurd imposition, all of the citizens of Gore and Kaikohe would resist such a notion as a dangerous imposition on their identity and autonomy.
But in the past 180 years or so the nation states of the planet have moved from comparative isolation and autonomy, to complete connectivity and dependence on each other. And when you look at the enormous progress in building the technical, commercial and legal infrastructures that support this massive global connectivity, an astounding amount of progress has been made. Especially since the end of WW2.
But politically we remain stuck in nation state thinking; for the most part we regard the idea of global governance with the same suspicion as might the people of Gore and Kaikohe in the example above. In reality we are a now a single global society, but politically we cannot let go the delusions the nation state is the highest form and end point of our social evolution.
And because we baulk at this last hurdle, the establishment of effective, democratically accountable global governance, we struggle to address virtually all the big problems we face.
Somewhere I read a while back that just the cash hoarded in Caribbean tax havens alone, not including other assets, was enough to pay the debts of all the nation states on earth. Legal only because they lie beyond the reach of the nations, but are of course pure parasitical piracy on the high seas of global finance.
The forces of globalism have leapt at the chance to dominate the new world order. And they are busy trying to prevent sovereign nations from uniting and exerting power. Think Brexit and the scorn thrown by the right at the United Nations.
Consider a company that rips off a client in Auckland, but is immune to redress because their offices are in Hamilton. Imagine how to deal with one town that pollutes for profit, and it’s neighbours who absorb the costs. And so on.
And we’re still having serious problems with that type of shit.
And because we baulk at this last hurdle, the establishment of effective, democratically accountable global governance, we struggle to address virtually all the big problems we face.
Take China’s territorial grab in the South China Sea for example. International law, that they’ve agreed to by belonging to the UN, makes such actions illegal. It was recognised that if anyone could go off and make an artificial island and claim it as territory it was going to have major impacts politically.
When China’s actions was found illegal by the appropriate court China simply ignored it and the only way to stop them would be an all out war.
This is where global governance will always have a problem. Stopping individuals committing crime is fairly easy for a community. It’s pretty much impossible for a group of nations to stop even a small one from doing what it likes because the only option available is war. Consider what would be needed to stop the US from doing whatever it likes.
Perhaps a global government will arise but I don’t see it happening for a thousand years or more and after capitalism has finally been removed. Until then we’re going to act as nation states that encourage better global behaviour from all countries. Unfortunately, the way many of the global institutions are set up (the IMF, World Bank, WTO, etcetera) actually does the exact opposite to what’s needed as they encourage capitalism and competition.
but I don’t see it happening for a thousand years or more and after capitalism has finally been removed.
Perhaps the other way around. I see it happening within my lifetime. Already most of the pre-conditions and building blocks are in place. Once established it would quickly suppress the robber-baron form of capitalist piracy that you so rightly object to.
In the end I believe it will happen, not so much because people of goodwill thought it a good idea … but from fear of the consequences of NOT doing so.
DtB and I have had many conversations about this one way or another. It’s my sense that markets will remain an enduring aspect of human life. But how those markets are organised, and what purposes they serve very much depends on the values and intentions of those of participate.
I don’t have a neat, encapsulated answer for your question; but we know that the motives of greed, social status, and overt power are not the universal human experience. If you look there are many examples of people whose life has bent to other gentler, loftier goals … so we know people are capable of this.
The trick is not so much the ‘good individual’, but the ‘good society’.
Why was there no MSM coverage of the FACT that on 1 August 2017, at Rutherford House Victoria University, the (then) Chair of Transparency International, Jose Ugaz, stated that John Key should be investigated over the Panama Papers?
I was present at that meeting, as were about 200 others.
Why the silence, here in New Zealand, ‘perceived’ to be ‘the least corrupt country in the world’?
Because investigating John Key over the Panama Papers would rip the scab off a 44 gallon drum of political ‘pus’, and help expose the NZ corruption REALITY?
Why do the really wealthy refuse to contribute to the collective good?
They got all that wealth by stealing. Sure, it was legal but it was still theft. You don’t think that they’re going to start paying their fair share now do you?
The rich never pay for anything whereas the poor pay for everything including for the rich to be rich.
Apple said the new structure had not lowered its taxes.
It said it remained the world’s largest taxpayer, paying about $35bn (£26bn) in corporation tax over the past three years, that it had followed the law and its changes “did not reduce our tax payments in any country”.
The point that Apple seems to be missing is that they didn’t increase the way that they should have.
There you go John Keys only goal in OUR political system is to line his and his m8 pockets and this is the mentality of the national party . He still has the power in OUR country to manipulate thing so he can carry on lining his pockets.
He is directly responsible for my situation giving the power to the authority’s to do what they want with no checks and balance’s so he could control everything. I felt a chill down my spine when I first seen him on TV. But I was to busy working my ass off thinking everyone would reward me for my hard work{ yea right} you are just a Maori is what my reward was 2 of the 3 company’s that shafted my whano and I come from bullshit land . Winston I’M next 1 he started mass migration 2 he attacked Maori mana by keeping our leaders out of the media 3 his 90 day employment clause there is much more for one to win in his system someone else has to lose .This does not have to be the way OUR Society works Kia kaha .
Don’t talk about it in soft terms like, why won’t they contribute to the common good,
speak of it as a fee that one must pay in order to live in respective nation.
And really that’s what it is.
It’s absurd to think that you get to live in a country for free.
Also put pressure on consumers.
Consumers aren’t helpless little children, they should have the integrity
to punish companies like Apple by boycotting their products, until
they remedy their fraudulent behaviour.
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Concerns about the tobacco industry’s ability to interfere in government policy making remain, despite the inability of the Office of the Auditor-General to investigate the Government’s decision to halve the excise tax on heated tobacco products. ...
Break out the punchlines and dust off your meme folder: Green Party MP Kahurangi Carter’s Copyright (Parody and Satire) Amendment Bill was pulled from the Ballot yesterday. ...
Kua hinga te manawa kairākau o Te Rua Tekau Ma Waru Tiwhatiwha te po! Kakarauru i te po! Ka rapuhia kei hea koe kua riro! Haere e te Ika a Whiro ki o tini hoa kua ngaro atu ki te Pō ...
The opposition parties stand united for an Aotearoa that honours Te Tiriti, rather than seeking to rewrite it. Labour, the Greens and Te Pāti Māori are working together against the Government’s divisive Treaty Principles Bill. ...
The opposition parties stand united for an Aotearoa that honours Te Tiriti, rather than seeking to rewrite it. Labour, the Greens and Te Pāti Māori are working together against the Government’s divisive Treaty Principles Bill. ...
The Deputy Prime Minister should apologise to the public servant he named and blamed for something they did not do, and for misusing the rules of Parliament. ...
The Government is taking action to ensure Southland farmers and growers are not affected by unreasonable regional farm plan deadlines, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay, Environment Minister Penny Simmonds and Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard say.“Cabinet has agreed to provide more time for farmers and growers to comply with regional rules ...
The Oranga Tamariki (Responding to Serious Youth Offending) Bill had its first reading at Parliament today. The Bill reaffirms the Government’s commitment to crack down on serious youth offending, Minister for Children Karen Chhour says. “In recent years we have seen an unacceptable spike in youth offending. “This Bill makes ...
Fairer, more sensible rules about managing earthquake risks are a step closer with the passing of legislation and the appointment of an independent chair to provide expert advice, Minister for Building and Construction Chris Penk says. “The Government is committed to reinvigorating our cities and regions to support economic growth, ...
People in Northland and Auckland will benefit from a new machine for cancer treatment installed at the Regional Cancer and Blood Service at Auckland City Hospital. The MV5 linear accelerator, or LINAC machine, officially opened today targets cancer tumours with pinpoint accuracy. Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says this new, ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters will travel to Europe for high-level talks with France, Germany and the United Kingdom next week. "Since taking office almost a year ago, the Coalition Government has emphasised the importance we place on New Zealand's traditional and likeminded diplomatic and ...
Police have made their first arrests under the new gang patch legislation, with two gang members arrested, says Police Minister Mark Mitchell. “Just before 11 this morning, Police in Wairoa apprehended a gang member for wearing a patch to the supermarket. He has been arrested and will now face enforcement ...
The Government is proposing two major changes to name suppression laws that will put the views of victims of sexual violence first, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “We are committed to restoring law and order and these two proposed changes will help ensure the victims of crime are put at ...
Cabinet has agreed to invite all regions to submit proposals for Regional Deals between central and local government that drive economic growth and deliver the infrastructure our country needs, Local Government Minister Simeon Brown and Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop say. Inviting all regions to propose a Regional Deal that boosts ...
One of the ten young men selected to participate in the Military-Style Academy Pilot has allegedly reoffended. Children’s Minister Karen Chhour is disappointed but says it would be naïve to think that none of these young men would reoffend. “I’m saddened that this young person has not taken this opportunity ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour says that school attendance is continuing to rise. In Term 3 of 2024 51.3 per cent of students attended school regularly, an increase of 5.3 percentage points from 46 per cent in Term 3 of 2023. “This Government has prioritised student attendance and it is ...
Ensuring New Zealand is the best place in the world for children and young people is the vision at the heart of the Government’s new Child and Youth Strategy, Child Poverty Reduction Minister Louise Upston says. “Childhood represents a huge opportunity to set people on a positive path towards living ...
The Government is reinstating the trade of livestock exports by sea while ensuring the highest standards of animal welfare, says Associate Minister of Agriculture Andrew Hoggard.“The Government will introduce legislation changes to reinstate the trade, enhance oversight, and strengthen requirements for exporters to identify risks and manage the welfare of ...
Tēnā koutou katoa – it is a pleasure to be here today. I would like to begin by acknowledging the important leadership role you all play in ensuring a quality health system New Zealanders can trust. There is enormous clinical expertise in this room covering a wide range of disciplines. ...
Tēnā koutou katoa. Mr President, Excellencies, Delegates. New Zealand, and all nations represented here today, are already dealing with the impacts of climate change. Our households, businesses, and economies are bearing the costs of its effects. The choices we make now will shape the severity of these impacts for generations ...
The Government has released its second Quarterly Investment Report (QIR) which shows substantial work still to be done by agencies to improve investment reporting and meet the Government’s expectations, Infrastructure and Acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “New Zealand has significant infrastructure and investment needs. The Government is determined to get ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced New Zealand will contribute NZ$10 million to the new Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage while at the annual United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) in Baku, Azerbaijan. “New Zealand is joining the global effort to address the significant challenge of responding to ...
The free ride for gangs is over when the clock strikes midnight tonight, with tough new laws officially coming into effect, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith and Police Minister Mark Mitchell say. “Gang patches will no longer be able to be worn in public. To earn the right to wear a ...
The Government is welcoming the decision by the Local Government Funding Agency to increase access to financing tools for fast growing councils to support greater investment in critical infrastructure, Local Government Minister Simeon Brown says.“Communities across the country are facing an infrastructure deficit and significant population growth is projected in ...
The Government has revealed that over the past three years, the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) has spent an eyewatering $786 million of taxpayers’ money on road cones and temporary traffic management (TTM), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“When I became Minister, I was surprised to learn that that NZTA did ...
Legislation that will double the financial jurisdiction of the Disputes Tribunal from $30,000 to $60,000 has passed first reading in Parliament today, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith. “We need to improve court timeliness and access to justice so that Kiwis and get on with their lives. Court delays affect everyone, the ...
Legislation that will specifically criminalise foreign interference and strengthen espionage offences has passed first reading in Parliament today, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “It is normal and appropriate for states to interact and work to influence one another. This encourages cooperation and can have mutually beneficial outcomes. “However, the reality ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed news that the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) Board has approved funding towards pre-implementation and early works on the State Highway 1 (SH1) Belfast to Pegasus Motorway and Woodend Bypass Road of National Significance (RoNS). “Reaching this significant milestone is a reflection of our Government’s ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says findings from the annual Health Survey highlight the need to continue driving better health outcomes for New Zealanders. The New Zealand Health Survey is an annual snapshot of key metrics measured from July 2023 – July 2024. Findings released this morning include: In 2023/24, ...
A renewed effort to get people to quit smoking will build on what has worked to date and target the groups who most need support, Associate Health Minister Casey Costello said today. “The latest New Zealand Health Survey results show the daily smoking rate at 6.9 per cent and we ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has announced four 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 ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour has today announced the next steps in the Government’s plan improve the quality of regulation by opening consultation on a proposed Regulatory Standards Bill. “New Zealand's low wages can be blamed on low productivity, and low productivity can be blamed on poor regulation,” says Mr Seymour. ...
Minister for Regulation David Seymour has today announced that the Ministry for Regulation’s Red Tape Tipline is now live. “We want to hear about your red tape horror stories. From today, New Zealanders will have a say on how they are regulated through an online portal,” says Mr Seymour. The ...
The Minister for Youth Matt Doocey has today announced the eleventh Youth Parliament will be taking place in 2025. “Youth Parliament offers a unique youth development opportunity to young people from across New Zealand to experience the political process and learn about how government works,” says Mr Doocey. “The two-day ...
After nearly a year in Government, Kiwis have seen significant change across law and order with promising early results shown across some Police statistics, says Police Minister Mark Mitchell. “In August 2023, I told New Zealanders that if they had not started to see a change in public safety within ...
With the launch of Fraud Awareness Week, the Government is committing to new coordination efforts across industry and government to combat online scams, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “Online financial scams are a growing problem for New Zealand. New data released today shows that Kiwis lost nearly ...
Minister for Children Karen Chhour will consider the recommendations made by the Social Services and Community Committee in its report back to Parliament on the Oranga Tamariki (Repeal of Section 7AA) Amendment Bill. “I want to thank the people who made submissions and those who appeared before the committee in ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins will this week attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus in Vientiane, Laos. “We need to take every opportunity to engage with our international partners, given the increasingly unstable geo-political situation,” Ms Collins says. “New Zealand has a long-standing commitment to this ...
The Minister for the Prevention of Family and Sexual Violence, Karen Chhour, was on hand to wish riders well at the start of the North Island leg of the White Ribbon Ride in Whakatāne this morning. The ride helps mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, ...
Construction on the next stage of the SH1 Papakura to Drury project will begin early next month, with the contract for works awarded to Fulton Hogan, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. "SH1 Papakura to Drury is a key project that will drive economic growth and productivity, reduce congestion, and enable people ...
Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has signed a pioneering trade agreement that prioritises New Zealand’s sustainable exports at a ceremony during APEC in Peru today. “The Agreement on Trade and Sustainability (ACCTS), between Costa Rica, Iceland, and Switzerland was concluded in July of this year and opens up significant ...
Five new Aquaculture Settlement Areas will help ensure Ngāi Tahu shares in the opportunities aquaculture offers for Southland’s economy, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. “The Aquaculture Settlement Areas (ASAs) I’m announcing today set aside space so the Crown and Ngāi Tahu can assess their potential for aquaculture development. ...
The terms of reference for a review of the performance of the electricity market have been released. The review, initiated by the Coalition Government during the power crisis in winter will look at whether current regulations and market design support economic growth and access to reliable and affordable electricity, Energy Minister ...
Kia ora koutou katoa. Nau mai, haere mai, piki mai. Ki te mihi atu ahau, ki te manwhenua nei, Te Atiawa, Ngāti toa rangatira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa. Thank you, Andy, for your introduction. Let me acknowledge you as the new Chief Executive of the Social Investment ...
Minister of State for Trade Nicola Grigg has travelled to Australia to attend the PACER Plus Ministers Meeting in Brisbane. “Trade plays a critical role in driving employment, economic growth, and improving the standards of living in the Pacific Region. The Government is strongly committed to supporting Pacific Island countries ...
Toitū te taiao – Our environment endures The Government is consulting on proposals to modernise New Zealand’s conservation management system, aiming to protect relevant natural areas while supporting sustainable growth in tourism and regional economies, Conservation Minister Tama Potaka says. “Today, the Department of Conservation – Te Papa Atawhai is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Richard Marles is an ambitious man who hasn’t given up the dream of one day reaching the top job. But, despite being deputy prime minister, his profile is much lower than that of Treasurer Jim ...
Analysis - The diversity of voices during the hīkoi was noticeable - from tangata moana to young immigrants to elderly Pākehā from the South Island. ...
When the bill to restore NZ citizenship to some Samoans passed this week, Parliament's galleries were full to the brim with members of the community. ...
Women’s Rights Party Co-leader Jill Ovens says the Ministry has put New Zealand children at risk by continuing to allow “off-label” prescribing of puberty blockers at far higher rates than other similar countries. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Bill Shorten has declared himself “a proud moderate” in a valedictory speech declaring parliament has the responsibility to ensure the extremes of left and right do not set the terms of political debate. Shorten, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Matt Garrow, Editorial Web Developer Studio Romantic/Shutterstock We all know how important it is to save enough money for retirement – but what about spending it wisely when we get there? Even for those who have built up a suitable ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Freeman, Associate Professor of Dermatology, Bond University ERIK Miheyeu/Shutterstock Sweating is our body’s way of cooling down, a bit like an internal air conditioner. When our core temperature rises (because it’s hot outside, or you’re exercising), sweat glands all ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nial Wheate, Professor of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Macquarie University Australia’s drug regulator has issued a safety warning over the medicine Phenergan and related products containing the antihistamine drug promethazine. The Therapeutic Goods Administration said the over-the-counter products should not be given to children ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Catherine Campbell, Lecturer, Performing Arts, UniSA Creative, University of South Australia Matt Byrne/STCSA Jack Maggs is a delight and a homage to theatrical storytelling in Australia. Based on Peter Carey’s bestselling novel, Jack Maggs follows the ex-convict as he lands ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Daniel Angus, Professor of Digital Communication, Director of QUT Digital Media Research Centre, Queensland University of Technology Ron Lach/Pexels The federal government today introduced into parliament legislation for its social media ban for people under 16 years. Communications Minister Michelle ...
"I can't see this lasting unless they have a budget to lock fullas up in jail which I think is absolutely stupid, really it's ludicrous," Ngavii Pekapo, who set up a Mongrel Mob chapter 54 years ago, says. ...
Ahead of his appearance in Aotearoa, the acclaimed British journalist, podcaster and documentarian talks to Stewart Sowman-Lund about why people are still fascinated by the fringes. The last place I would expect to find Jon Ronson is relaxing in the countryside. The iconic British journalist and writer is best known ...
The United States has vetoed a UN Security Council ceasefire resolution — for the fourth time — in Israel’s war on Gaza, while Hezbollah demands a complete ceasefire and “protection of Lebanon’s sovereignty” in any deal with Israel. Amid the death and devastation, Joe Hendren reflects on his time in ...
The acclaimed New Zealand drama has just premiered on TV in the United Kingdom, and the five-star reviews are already flowing in. Six months after it was called a “blistering” “tour de force” by Australian critics, and nearly a year since The Spinoff declared it the best drama New Zealand ...
New Zealanders are drinking and smoking less, but most other recreational drugs are becoming cheaper, more popular and more available, two new reports show. Two significant new surveys about drugs in Aotearoa were released this week, offering a rare insight into New Zealanders’ choice of substances, which ones are becoming ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Steven Ratuva, Director, Macmillan Brown Centre for Pacific Studies, University of Canterbury Lenora Qereqeretabua, the deputy speaker of Fiji’s Parliament, at the COP29 climate summit.IISD/ENB/Mike Muzurakis, CC BY-SA As this year’s UN climate summit reaches its final stage of negotiations, Pacific ...
The new movie musical is undoubtedly a fun watch, but it’s also proof that bigger isn’t always better, writes Stewart Sowman-Lund. Contains minor spoilers for Wicked.There’s no doubt that Wicked is going to be huge. No other pop culture event this year, save from maybe Charli XCX’s Brat, has ...
There are calls for New Zealand’s Family Violence Act to name economic harm as a standalone type of violence, rather than a subcategory of psychological abuse, to bring it in line with the United Kingdom and Australia. Economic harm – restricting access to, sabotaging or exploiting another person’s financial resources, ...
New Zealand is currently running a structural fiscal deficit, with expenditure exceeding revenue. Economic growth falling short of expectations has been making it harder for the Government to bring the books back into balance. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jordan Peter Anthony Pitt, Associate Dean of Indigenous Strategy and Services (Faculty of Science), University of Sydney An enduring challenge facing science around the world is how to best include and engage Indigenous communities. In Australia, for example, 0.5% of Indigenous ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Vaughan Cruickshank, Senior Lecturer in Health and Physical Education, University of Tasmania Cricket originated in England, but has been spread worldwide by British soldiers and settlers in the past few hundred years. It is now the second most popular sport in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kira Morgan Hughes, PhD Candidate in Allergy and Asthma, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University When spring arrives, so do warnings about thunderstorm asthma. But a decade ago, most of us hadn’t heard of it. So where did thunderstorm asthma ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Yassie Samie, Postdoctoral Researcher in Fashion and Textiles, RMIT University anna.spoka/Shutterstock What happens to your clothes after you don’t want them any more? Chances are, you will donate them to op shops run by a charity organisation. There are more ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Quiggin, Professor, School of Economics, The University of Queensland IndustryAndTravel/Shutterstock Prime Minister Anthony Albanese didn’t see this coming. At the global COP29 climate talks in Baku, the Australian government was indirectly criticised by two allies, the United States and the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Phoebe Hart, Associate Professor, Film Screen & Animation, Queensland University of Technology Julia Firak Stan’s new Christmas film Nugget is Dead is a colourful production that follows the rules of the seasonal genre film to a tee – with an Aussie ...
My parents are finally getting divorced. So why do I feel like my stepdad’s feelings are still my problem? Want Hera’s help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nzDear HeraMy parents recently announced their separation. This in itself isn’t a problem. I’ve already gone through this once before in my early childhood, so ...
If the government won’t hold polluters to account, then people will. People are increasingly taking to the streets and the courtrooms, putting their bodies on the line to shut down polluting industries. This will only escalate further unless New ...
Paradise lost 
Open access notables Projected increase in the frequency of extremely active Atlantic hurricane seasons, Lopez et al., Science Advances: Future changes to the year-to-year swings between active and inactive North Atlantic tropical cyclone (TC) seasons have received little attention, yet may have great societal implications in areas prone to hurricane ...7 hours ago
Chatting in the supermarket this morning, I found I needed to lunge for the chicken drumsticks.Coping mechanisms: who hasn’t felt a greater need for them lately?When it all gets too much, I turn to demonstrating handy butchery hacks.It wasn’t that she’d said anything wrong, our friend, not at all. We ...11 hours ago
This is written in response to the highly significant open letter from a group of economists that was today addressed to Christopher Luxon. The year is 2024, and it’s 1984. The country is reeling from a record Olympic medal gold haul, while the globe grapples with the choice of the ...12 hours ago
Back in 2022, RNZ took an in-depth look at the "Independent" Police Conduct Authority and its handling of killings by police. These are the most serious test of oversight, and you would expect the police's use of lethal force to receive the most severe scrutiny. But despite the police regularly ...16 hours ago
The Hīkoi mō Te Tiriti arrived at Parliament on Tuesday – the size is being debated but estimates range from 42,000 to 100,000. The Prime Minister is defending not attending due to some of the organisers being affiliated with Te Pāti Māori. The national gang patch ban came into force ...16 hours ago
I spoke to former Productivity Chair Nana this morning about the letter he and a group of other economists sent to PM Christopher Luxon to urge the Government to urgently suspend cuts to spending and investment for the sake of the economy, struggling businesses and the wellbeing of vulnerable ...17 hours ago
Unity on the Streets / Unity at the TableAfter the Hīkoi, all three right wing Coalition leaders came together to push the idea that the 42,000 - 50,000 + strong Hikoi was somehow less potent and brave, and more illegitimate than the energy and crowd displayed.Prime Minister Christopher Luxon 20-November: ...18 hours ago
I wear my leather jacket like a great big hugRadiating charm - a living cloak of luckIt's the only concrete link with an absent friendIt's a symbol I can wear 'till we meet againOr it's a weight around my neck while the owner's freeBoth protector and reminder of mortalityIt's a ...20 hours ago
With Auckland Transport’s future up in the air under Mayor Wayne Brown’s proposed CCO reform, we’ve dug way back into the archives, to unearth this post originally published in March 2010. As you’ll see, many of the debates that were being had when AT was first proposed continue to ...20 hours ago
David Horatio Waterbed SeymourFringe politician and dweeb transformed successfully by ThinkTank money into a well-oiled soundbite robot.Currently programmed to say: Equal rights for all New Zealanders Equal rights for all New Zealanders Equal rights for all New Zealanders Was previously programmed to say:I am a proud libertarian andI am a ...1 day ago
One in four Kiwi children live in households where food runs out often or sometimes. Photo: Getty ImagesKia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, November 20: The lead: The official annual Health Survey found sharp ...2 days ago
Neither Wellington nor Parliament has ever seen anything like it before. The Police said there were more than 40,000 but however many there were, yesterday’s Hikoi to Parliament was a monumental event. It was almost three times the Foreshore and Seabed martch of 2004 and many,many times bigger than ...2 days ago
The euphoria from yesterday’s hikoi may be transitory, but is no less valuable for that. It is pretty rare for the left to feel itself to be in the overwhelming majority, and speaking as the voice of the people. Lest that momentum be lost, the organisers will no doubt be ...2 days ago
Mr David Seymour crawling up to the ceilingThe sun don't shine the sun don't shine the sun don't shine at allMamma Pappa say you should go to school, I don't know what forNow that I've grown up and seen the world and all its liesSong: Southside of Bombay"Ake, ake, ake" ...2 days ago
All happy families are alike; each unhappy family has a Drunk Uncle Kevin in there somewhere. If your Kevin is anything like the ones I know, he was getting along happily enough without having to think too much about the Treaty Principles Bill apart from bloody good job, onya guys ...2 days ago
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Hi,So there’s a bunch of new stuff on the Webworm store (www.webworm.store) — just in time for the Holidays. Read more ...3 days ago
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I appreciate that A Phuulish Fellow has been fairly quiet recently. That’s a combination of two things – comparatively little in the way of relevant material to discuss (at least until The War of the Rohirrim comes out next month), and my general work on The Secret Non-Fiction Writing Project. ...3 days ago
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The era of neoliberalism has been destructive on so many levels, with a huge growth in wealth and privilege for the one percent. A hollowing out of the state; fraying of the safety net; inadequate government investment in infrastructure; and continued environmental degradation has resulted in damage on a vast ...4 days ago
In a manner of speakingI just want to sayThat I could never forget the wayYou told me everythingBy saying nothingOh, give me the wordsGive me the wordsThat tell me nothingOh, give me the wordsGive me the wordsThat tell me everythingSongwriter: Winston TongNext Tuesday, the subscription price for Nick’s Kōrero will ...4 days ago
The divisive Treaty Principles Bill is not just a risk for the National Party, it’s a risk to civil order and unity, warns a National Party grandee. Photo: Getty ImagesKia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on ...4 days ago
..Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.Self-appointed “Bishop” and proto-fascist, Brian Tamaki was at it again on 16 November, blocking Auckland’s southern motorway, SH1.This time, the target of his ire wasn’t the Civil Unions Act; covid lock-downs; mask mandates; or ...4 days ago
I cannot stop grabbing people by the lapels, or shoulders, or similar, and raving at them about the tiny miracles in my ears.I can hear again! There could not be a more satisfied customer in all the world.In a noisy cafe I am even catching words that Karren cannot, she ...5 days ago
Take the baitYou pay the priceIt's much too lateFor good adviceYou know and I know that our good things' throughBecause there's consequences for what we doConsequences for me and youWriters: Kevin Robert Hayes, David Nagier, Bonnie Adele Hayes.Fallout from the first readingOne News began last night by saying that tens ...6 days ago
Hi,If I was to accurately sum up my mental state over the week, I’d just say that I got a huge fright from my own shadow.I’d nipped out for an 11pm neighborhood stroll, just to calm down after a day of stress and screens. The Cure and Fazerdaze’s new record ...6 days ago
One of the major problems the Government has in implementing its ‘going for housing growth’ strategy is that it isn’t giving much funding help to councils. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāKia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and ...7 days ago
And screamingAre we we are, are we we are the waitingAnd screamingAre we we are, are we we are the waitingForget me nots, second thoughts live in isolationHeads or tails and fairy tales in my mindAre we we are, are we we are the waiting unknownThe rage and love, the ...7 days ago
Only two months ago, Nicola Willis had to step in to stop Health New Zealand cutting tea and toast for post-birth parents, and now Lester Levy is riding to the rescue with a welcome message for all: our health workers can once again drink Milo, and will no longer need ...1 week ago
You can pay a great deal of money for the services of a KC. So just what would some peerless legal writing from 40 or so of them be worth, do you reckon?Priceless, that’s what. It’s not even the half of it, but this is my favourite part of the ...1 week ago
Good morning, and I’m sorry I’ve been away for a couple of days.I’ve been focusing on the Hikoi, and also testing out sentiment on the Treaty Principles Bill. It’s complicated, and the Treaty Principles Bill will be debated in the House today. The Government’s own lawyers have told them the ...1 week ago
The State would like to remind you that they are in control. They manage your employment prospects, and can destroy the job market you and yours rely on by mass-cancelling construction projects, cutting funding, and firing a good chunk of our public servants. They wield the mechanisms that provide scrutiny ...1 week ago
As the weight of the world Hangs on your shoulders The weight of the world Starts to take over again And over again All that you once loved, now you hate So slowly relearn how to meditate To have and to hold And never let go Can you feel it ...1 week ago
As the Hikoi against it swells into the tens of thousands, KCs call on National to kill off ACT’s divisive Treaty Principles Bill. Photo: Getty ImagesKia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Thursday, November 14: The ...1 week ago
On November 5th, the Spinoff published a very interesting article on Stephen Rainbow, the Human Rights Commission’s latest recruitment, and how he came to get the controversial appointment. Naturally because of the excitement of the US election, it’s flown a little below the radar. https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/05-11-2024/i-didnt-get-the-hrc-job-stephen-rainbows-human-rights-commission-appointment-just-got-weirderThe article details evidence of the ...1 week ago
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Kia mau ra, kia mau raKi te mana motuhakeMe te arohaHold fast, hold fastTo your sovereigntyAnd to love and compassionLyrics: Hīrini Melbourne. “Ngā Iwi E passionately calls for unity among the peoples of the Pacific, a cause deeply cherished by Melbourne himself.”I sat at my desk this morning and thought ...1 week ago
The Government has passed legislation to remove agriculture from the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) while Aotearoa’s reputation on climate action plummets. ...10 hours ago
The National Government is walking away from our manufacturing sector with constant reports of closures and job losses. ...13 hours ago
The Government is taking action to ensure Southland farmers and growers are not affected by unreasonable regional farm plan deadlines, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay, Environment Minister Penny Simmonds and Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard say.“Cabinet has agreed to provide more time for farmers and growers to comply with regional rules ...11 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Richard Marles is an ambitious man who hasn’t given up the dream of one day reaching the top job. But, despite being deputy prime minister, his profile is much lower than that of Treasurer Jim ...4 hours ago
62% of respondents support the extension of the OIA to cover MPs’ spending, compared to just 13% opposed and 24% were unsure. ...6 hours ago
The political week has been packed with worthy distractions, but all week Parliament has focused on passing new laws. Here are the highlights. ...6 hours ago
Ahead of his appearance in Aotearoa, the acclaimed British journalist, podcaster and documentarian talks to Stewart Sowman-Lund about why people are still fascinated by the fringes. The last place I would expect to find Jon Ronson is relaxing in the countryside. The iconic British journalist and writer is best known ...14 hours ago
Analysis: NZ is lifting what was supposed to be a permanent ban on live animal exports. But it’s not the lucrative industry it once was. The post NZ will resume live animal exports – to low demand appeared first on Newsroom. ...17 hours ago
I think the NZ connections haven’t yet been discovered, and I believe some NZ journos are working on it – according to a Stuff editorial.
Many of the documents are from the Asiaciti Trust Group, based in Samoa, but which has an office in Auckland.
Asiaciti also made submissions to the government in 2014, to not tighten NZ regulations on overseas trusts, as some of us discussed yesterday on Open Mike
PS: I have seen a screenshot on twitter of a document claiming Malcolm Turnbull (Oz PM) gets a mention in the Paradise Papers, but I can’t find a link to any article on it.
Imagine NZ had no nation scale government. Just the local councils we’re familiar with. On a day to day basis local govt provides the vast majority of ordinary services that make life civilised, rubbish, roads, water, libraries, parks, building regulations, parking, animal and pest control … on and on. For ordinary people, whose lives are located in one place at a time, this scale of governance suffices for most of our needs.
But now, absent any governance on a national scale, how would all these small councils handle entities on a scale beyond their jurisdiction? Leaving aside obvious technical problems like providing national highways and transport, communications and the like … consider the problem of handling large companies that operate across multiple council districts. Consider individuals who make themselves resident in one town for tax purposes, but locate their assets in another which imposes little or no tax. Consider a company that rips off a client in Auckland, but is immune to redress because their offices are in Hamilton. Imagine how to deal with one town that pollutes for profit, and it’s neighbours who absorb the costs. And so on.
Such a scenario strikes us as absurd; dealing with these issues is exactly why we have a nation state.
But wait. If the entire human population of NZ was indeed just say, two small towns, imagine maybe Kaikohe and Gore. They were separated by days of travel, barely communicated and the few traders who operated between then did so on a basis of personal trust alone. Would we then need all the apparatus of a nation state? Well no, we would think it an absurd imposition, all of the citizens of Gore and Kaikohe would resist such a notion as a dangerous imposition on their identity and autonomy.
But in the past 180 years or so the nation states of the planet have moved from comparative isolation and autonomy, to complete connectivity and dependence on each other. And when you look at the enormous progress in building the technical, commercial and legal infrastructures that support this massive global connectivity, an astounding amount of progress has been made. Especially since the end of WW2.
But politically we remain stuck in nation state thinking; for the most part we regard the idea of global governance with the same suspicion as might the people of Gore and Kaikohe in the example above. In reality we are a now a single global society, but politically we cannot let go the delusions the nation state is the highest form and end point of our social evolution.
And because we baulk at this last hurdle, the establishment of effective, democratically accountable global governance, we struggle to address virtually all the big problems we face.
Somewhere I read a while back that just the cash hoarded in Caribbean tax havens alone, not including other assets, was enough to pay the debts of all the nation states on earth. Legal only because they lie beyond the reach of the nations, but are of course pure parasitical piracy on the high seas of global finance.
Good comment.
Sums it up well.
The forces of globalism have leapt at the chance to dominate the new world order. And they are busy trying to prevent sovereign nations from uniting and exerting power. Think Brexit and the scorn thrown by the right at the United Nations.
Exactly mickey. Just the confusion heaped on the word ‘globalist’ is enough to make me despair.
but at least these guys won’t need campaign contributions from big business and are thus not ‘owned and beholden’ to anyone. Right? right?
Consider a company that rips off a client in Auckland, but is immune to redress because their offices are in Hamilton. Imagine how to deal with one town that pollutes for profit, and it’s neighbours who absorb the costs. And so on.
And we’re still having serious problems with that type of shit.
Take China’s territorial grab in the South China Sea for example. International law, that they’ve agreed to by belonging to the UN, makes such actions illegal. It was recognised that if anyone could go off and make an artificial island and claim it as territory it was going to have major impacts politically.
When China’s actions was found illegal by the appropriate court China simply ignored it and the only way to stop them would be an all out war.
This is where global governance will always have a problem. Stopping individuals committing crime is fairly easy for a community. It’s pretty much impossible for a group of nations to stop even a small one from doing what it likes because the only option available is war. Consider what would be needed to stop the US from doing whatever it likes.
Perhaps a global government will arise but I don’t see it happening for a thousand years or more and after capitalism has finally been removed. Until then we’re going to act as nation states that encourage better global behaviour from all countries. Unfortunately, the way many of the global institutions are set up (the IMF, World Bank, WTO, etcetera) actually does the exact opposite to what’s needed as they encourage capitalism and competition.
but I don’t see it happening for a thousand years or more and after capitalism has finally been removed.
Perhaps the other way around. I see it happening within my lifetime. Already most of the pre-conditions and building blocks are in place. Once established it would quickly suppress the robber-baron form of capitalist piracy that you so rightly object to.
In the end I believe it will happen, not so much because people of goodwill thought it a good idea … but from fear of the consequences of NOT doing so.
Once established it would quickly suppress the robber-baron form of capitalist piracy that you so rightly object to
Hello RL..
What might replace the ‘robbery’?
Those building blocks you refer to, look to be larger scale ‘robbery’ foundations…
DtB and I have had many conversations about this one way or another. It’s my sense that markets will remain an enduring aspect of human life. But how those markets are organised, and what purposes they serve very much depends on the values and intentions of those of participate.
I don’t have a neat, encapsulated answer for your question; but we know that the motives of greed, social status, and overt power are not the universal human experience. If you look there are many examples of people whose life has bent to other gentler, loftier goals … so we know people are capable of this.
The trick is not so much the ‘good individual’, but the ‘good society’.
Thank You, RL.
Essentially a case of ‘good versus evil’…
Hope must always be retained in the heart, IMO
Sincere and genuine, hope
John Key’s lawyer definitely got a mention.
Why was there no MSM coverage of the FACT that on 1 August 2017, at Rutherford House Victoria University, the (then) Chair of Transparency International, Jose Ugaz, stated that John Key should be investigated over the Panama Papers?
I was present at that meeting, as were about 200 others.
Why the silence, here in New Zealand, ‘perceived’ to be ‘the least corrupt country in the world’?
Because investigating John Key over the Panama Papers would rip the scab off a 44 gallon drum of political ‘pus’, and help expose the NZ corruption REALITY?
I think so.
Penny Bright
‘Anti-corruption whistle-blower’.
They got all that wealth by stealing. Sure, it was legal but it was still theft. You don’t think that they’re going to start paying their fair share now do you?
The rich never pay for anything whereas the poor pay for everything including for the rich to be rich.
Paradise Papers: Apple’s secret tax bolthole revealed
The point that Apple seems to be missing is that they didn’t increase the way that they should have.
FYI
I have a two commentaries on the unfolding scandal of the Paradise Papers. They are available here
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/nov/06/britain-tackle-tax-avoidance-repeatedly-failed-paradise-papers
https://leftfootforward.org/2017/11/the-tax-avoidance-of-the-paradise-papers-is-the-direct-result-of-tory-inaction/
Regards
Prem Sikka
At least there is no nact to act as a road block this time
It’s scandalous I will interesting to read the nz connection
First Dog goes moo!
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/nov/06/greedy-swine-are-using-tax-loopholes-to-offshore-billions-also-cows-go-moo
There you go John Keys only goal in OUR political system is to line his and his m8 pockets and this is the mentality of the national party . He still has the power in OUR country to manipulate thing so he can carry on lining his pockets.
He is directly responsible for my situation giving the power to the authority’s to do what they want with no checks and balance’s so he could control everything. I felt a chill down my spine when I first seen him on TV. But I was to busy working my ass off thinking everyone would reward me for my hard work{ yea right} you are just a Maori is what my reward was 2 of the 3 company’s that shafted my whano and I come from bullshit land . Winston I’M next 1 he started mass migration 2 he attacked Maori mana by keeping our leaders out of the media 3 his 90 day employment clause there is much more for one to win in his system someone else has to lose .This does not have to be the way OUR Society works Kia kaha .
Don’t talk about it in soft terms like, why won’t they contribute to the common good,
speak of it as a fee that one must pay in order to live in respective nation.
And really that’s what it is.
It’s absurd to think that you get to live in a country for free.
Also put pressure on consumers.
Consumers aren’t helpless little children, they should have the integrity
to punish companies like Apple by boycotting their products, until
they remedy their fraudulent behaviour.
Blame is to be shared in this case.