Screw democracy – Auckland to get the Canterbury treatment

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 7:24 am, May 28th, 2016 - 172 comments
Categories: Abuse of power, auckland supercity, democracy under attack, john key, local government, national, privatisation, you couldn't make this shit up - Tags: auckland, auckland supercity, democracy under attack, housing, housing crisis

We all want a solution to the housing crisis. But this isn’t the way:

Key gets tough on Auckland with new policy forcing councils to release land

The Prime Minister has come down hard on Auckland saying a new policy will force the city’s council to release more land and bring down house prices. …

Bernard Hickey was first with the story:

Key says next week’s National Policy Statement on urban land use will direct Auckland Council to release land if it fails to meet targets; says developers will take Council to court and win; says Council may have to sell assets to fund infrastruce

Prime Minister John Key has upped the ante in the Government’s battle with the Auckland Council to free up more land for housing, saying a new National Policy Statement in the next fortnight would direct Councils to release land as a matter of law.

Responding to Council concerns that it could not afford the NZ$17 billion infrastructure bill to provide the roads, public transport, water and sewage pipes to underpin that housing, Key said the Auckland Council may need to look at selling assets. …

172 comments on “Screw democracy – Auckland to get the Canterbury treatment ”

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Colonial Viper 1

28 May 2016 at 7:42 am

i thought all political parties including ACT and Labour were agreed on the fact that Auckland land urgently needs to be freed up for rapid housing development, and that the Auckland City Council has to act quickly to do so. Or is that not the case?
- mauī 1.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 9:50 am
  
  Not what the Deputy Mayor is saying,
  
  “We’ve got six and half years of land planned for, infrastructure in the ground and ready to go. Government themselves have got more than 20 special housing areas that belong to Housing New Zealand that are ready to go.
  
  “There’s no shortage of places to build. Our question to government would be, perhaps you just need to get on with it.”
- ropata 1.2
  
  28 May 2016 at 1:00 pm
  
  There are plenty of other measures to be taken than concreting our precious rural environs, there are underutilised buildings all over the damn place. A land tax, CGT, and proper interventions by govt are needed to fix the broken market. Government could double taxes on building McMansions and incentivise more affordable housing projects by developers.
  
  The gnats could fix the housing crisis almost overnight but they just don’t want to. By breaking the urban boundary the Gnats are essentially giving free money to their land banking mates. The land bankers and speculators are the problem not the council. Where are the f$cking penalties/taxes etc to stop this behaviour?
  - Macro 1.2.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 1:19 pm
    
    That is it in a nut shell!
    The greedies sitting on land on the outskirts are rubbing their fat little palms in glee at the prospect.
    CV if you can’t see this you’re blind. It’s all about taking decisions away from the populous and enriching your mates. It’s as corrupt as Kiwi Keith’s Kinloch. These people are simply despicable.
    Indeed this move will ensure that in the future Key will be seen as surpassing Holyoake as NZ’s most corrupt PM.
    - Colonial Viper 1.2.1.1
      
      29 May 2016 at 5:55 pm
      
      None of you have replied to my comment. That most political parties in Wellington either tacitly or actively support the urgent opening up of AKL land.
- Lloyd 1.3
  
  30 May 2016 at 12:20 am
  
  Several points in your question colonial Viper:
  -I didn’t see the Green party agreeing to expansion as they way to solve Auckland’s housing crisis.
  -“Freeing up” land for housing implies that land is somehow locked away from housing. The Rural-Urban boundary Auckland Regional Council and now the Auckland Council have been working with is the practical limit of where sewage services get to. The land outside the limit needs a massive investment into infrastructure to support high density housing.
  Lets look south of Auckland. Sure you could put in four houses per hectare with septic tanks but you would need all the land from Pukekohe to Hamilton to really satisfy the housing demand. That’s just the sewage problem. Water is a little easier but in many places storm-water from all those roofs, roads and driveways is also a massive problems. Now transport – The southern motorway is almost always blocked every weekday morning. Fill in the onion fields of Pukekohe what have you got? No onions and people who can’t get to jobs in Auckland.
  If the Nats had got stuck into Auckland’s rail, finished the CRL and got the electrification of the line to Pukekohe finished and extended the line’s electrification to Hamilton the transport might not be so bad as it will be for the next few years.
  OK what can the Council do about this/ Borrow money to install infrastructure? I think you will find that earlier Nat government’s have made borrowing by Council’s too complicated to allow Auckland Council to do this.
  My guess is that a government jumping into this mess would find the action would be politically beneficial for a very short time before the public realised they had been raped again by the Nats.
  I think the THREAT of doing something to the Auckland Council makes a good sound bite and creates an appearance that
  1. The government is doing something about the housing crisis, and
  2. It puts the blame for the housing crisis on someone other than the government.
  Intensification with the government leading the way on spending on small dense housing in areas already served by infrastructure will get us out of the housing mess.
tc 2

28 May 2016 at 7:47 am

Naked panic probably because penguins polling is telling them they are not getting back in next year so it’s an all out plunder during local body elections.

Their developer mates will be prepared and ready to go up against an unprepared council as the CT manufactured crises model gets another run as per ACC, ECAN, DHB’s etc
- Mosa 2.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 10:41 am
  
  This is NOT naked panic but a well thought out strategy.
  Key and this govt don’t do anything without a plan.
  1 look tough and issue ultimatums.
  2 be seen to acknowledge the problem.
  3 local body election in Oct so they want a right leaning council.
  4 threaten a commissioner to run Auckland giving the perception the current council is inept and should be dismissed.
  5 great platform for the right wing in Oct.
  Key is showing “leadership” in what he has said is not a crisis but a problem going in to the 2017 campaign.
  The real legacy here is National keeping control of serious issues that are their own failure and blaming in this case the Auckland council ahead of remaining in office for another 2 terms,keeping them in a position of strength in our MMP parliment.
  This last 8 years has been anout laying the groundwork for a 15 year term.
  The left is STILL underestimating their enemy.
  One of their biggest assets is control of our media, unprecedented in NZ political history.
  - roy cartland 2.1.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 12:35 pm
    
    I tend to agree. One thing we know about Key et al is that they’re NOT stupid. They know how economics works, and are adept at public manipulation. Saying they’re panicking assumes that they didn’t know the crisis would happen.
    
    It’s frightening to think that they would actually engineer this misery (who could be that cynical?) but remember he does not work for us. It’s no conspiracy, the neolib have been quite open about it.
    
    https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/apr/15/neoliberalism-ideology-problem-george-monbiot
    
    https://zcomm.org/znetarticle/disinventing-democracy/
    - KJT 2.1.1.1
      
      29 May 2016 at 9:15 am
      
      http://www.naomiklein.org/shock-doctrine
      
      Making money out of disasters they have caused is SOP for Neo-liberals.
      
      Like stuffing the public education system so they can make a profit from private(sorry “partnership”) schools.
      
      I do not think Neo-liberal leaders are so thick as not to have a plan.
  - Unicus 2.1.2
    
    28 May 2016 at 4:39 pm
    
    Very true – disolving Auckland’s democracy was Nat/Act ‘s sh…ty little plan all along .
    
    They knew the “super city” was a sham from the begining . Disqualifying an elected council is easy when it’s task is impossible to implement .
    
    Government by Commissioner (dictator) is simply the end game of these repugnant traitors .
    
    And will Aucklanders resist – don’t hold your breath
- Chooky 2.2
  
  28 May 2016 at 10:34 pm
  
  +100 tc
madtom 3

28 May 2016 at 7:55 am

Just what “Auckland land” are we talking about? Parks?

And what does “freed up” mean? Free rein for developers? Loss of exactly how much more local control? No notification or consultation for neighbors of the new high-rises who will lose sun or view?

But most of all, what about the traffic, already excessive and costly? Just build higher population density now and worry about moving people around later?

Are we supposed to just bow our heads or also kneel for the ease of the headsman?

Specifics, please.
- AmaKiwi 3.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 8:59 am
  
  What about infrastructure?
  
  It takes years to put in water and sewage pipes, power, adequate access roads, schools.
  
  A desperate government. A Salvation Army official said, “This crisis has been building for ten years. It will take ten years to solve it.”
  
  Neo-libealism: the slow growing social cancer.
- Lloyd 3.2
  
  30 May 2016 at 12:33 am
  
  Tory mates own land just outside the RUB. The Nats’ mates will make lots selling this land for “modest” 400 square metre tilt-concrete dwellings with schist pillars around the front doors. This of course will solve the housing crisis.
Keith 4

28 May 2016 at 8:00 am

National have lept into inaction on the housing crisis, but behind this bullshit excuse and kite flying by John Key lies the real reason;

Not enough houses to satisfy the speculators
Not enough houses threatens the bubble
Got to be seen to be doing something but don’t want to change a thing in reality but are using Auckland Council as a whipping boy in case the bubble bursts.
And best of all National can use this opportunity to simply take over Auckland Council fully this time, because they failed last time in 2010 when they created this monster and they will do it without a vote being cast by Aucklanders. Nationals true colours are showing here.

The possibilities are endless, lots of assets to sell off to Nationals people, no more stupid public transport initiatives, total unquestioning adherence and undemocratic control all based on a massive lie. The Brighter Future.

Fuck right off National, your disdain for peoples rights and your born to rule arrogance is buying a fight you will not win!
- tc 4.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 8:31 am
  
  Nice summary on a ‘crises’ manufactured by their cheque book immigration, no cgt, no rules on foreign ownership of residential land, state housing sales, haven based tax free funds etc
  
  Smiths completed the scoping so here comes the implementation before goff gets the mayoralty maybe.
  
  Urgency on the way for some developer drafted legislation similar to the way talleys authored OHS changes.
  - Chooky 4.1.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 10:36 pm
    
    +100 tc
- AmaKiwi 4.2
  
  28 May 2016 at 9:01 am
  
  @ Keith
  
  +1
save nz 5

28 May 2016 at 8:25 am

National has already over ruled Auckland democracy and created the Super City – full of cronies and fiefdoms.

Just look at the billion dollar Auckland IT debacle that rate payers have to pay for, (no integration yet, call up and see for yourself when you ask to access a record). Just loads and loads of F ups and individuals getting rich of it off the backs of ratepayers.

Under the Supercity how about look at how much legal action has been generated – a bonanza for law firms – in particular around the unitary plan forced through by the government in record time and brainiac council planners who think the it is ok to steal 1km of Harbour for the Ports of Auckland, the Kauri tree massacre, someone losing 1/4 of their cladding on a duplex without being notified and many more examples of taking from the community to give wealth via planning to a developer or COO.

Soon height limits will be gone, goodbye views and sun. Just like the Wellington neighbour that decided to put up a wall to block their neighbours sea view for some sort of bizarre retaliation. The point is the council approved it and the poor neighbour was forced to fight to reverse it. If you think a $5,000 rates rise is unaffordable for Nationals supercity IT debacle, try $50,000 to get an absurd Trump like wall decision to be reversed at environment court that some nuisance neighbour dreams up.

But wait, didn’t the government arbitrarily rezone land into SHA and say they will put in government land for affordable housing? Never got the houses! Maybe because land is not the problem it is the building of the houses and the fact you can’t build affordable houses in NZ because of underinvestment in trades (just relying on overseas labour to build) and the monopoly of building materials and price fixing to name but a few. Instead of encouraging individuals to build, everything is bigger up and made more complex by handing the responsibility to a handful of developers whose motivation is profit not building affordable houses.

Like the Soho hole in Ponsonby, developers get so greedy, they big everything up and run out of time and money before they build anything. In the end they had to full in the Soho hole in Ponsonby to make a smaller development which at least will be built. Planners and developers need protection from themselves and their own stupid ideas these days.

The Natz are recreating Auckland in their own neoliberal image, Empty houses owned by tax haven offshore based wealthy nationals while local families live in cars and the we are all stuck in traffic and being told tolls are the answer and to sell off our council assets to pay for National’s F ups.

The point is too, what are our future Mayors and councillors got to say about it? No problem prime minister – dictatorship is our middle name or are they going to get some guts and do their job protecting Auckland from leaky buildings, out of control idiot government and worse?

Key did not like his international reputation tarnished by the Guardian revealing he has turned our country into a disgusting underclass of families in cars under his 8 years of IDU rule while his tax havens 0% status for offshore investors sit pretty. Now he is going to kick out democracy openly by taking over Auckland so his developer mates can build up monstrosities (if like in CHCH it is going to take years even for this as they try to squeeze out as much tax payer welfare as possible)!
- save nz 5.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 8:29 am
  
  Hello, we are now in round #2 – National lets developer mates take control of housing, last time was the leaky building syndrome….
  - AmaKiwi 5.1.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 9:08 am
    
    save nz (5)
    
    National said the Supercity would be more efficient and lower AKL rates . . . NOT.
    
    What a bunch of dictatorial f*cking liars.
    - Stuart Munro 5.1.1.1
      
      28 May 2016 at 4:04 pm
      
      Like Max Bradford’s ‘Power Reforms’. Since it doesn’t work, let’s have our public electricty assets back. Nova and Meridian can go fuck themselves.
  - tc 5.1.2
    
    28 May 2016 at 9:34 am
    
    Going all out now to get as much as they can across into the private sector of mates and sinecures.
AmaKiwi 6

28 May 2016 at 9:19 am

You want to see rents go down?

1. Require rental properties to meet minimum standards for health and safety, with tough inspections and severe penalties for non-complying landlords.

2. Take away the tax deduction for landlord’s mortgage interest.

3. Put a supertax on non-resident landlords.

4. Ban non-residents/non-citizens from buying property.

The government is sovereign. It can do anything it wants, so long as it doesn’t stop the rich from getting richer.

I have read in history books about class war. Now I get to experience it first hand.
- TepidSupport 6.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 9:31 am
  
  Unfortunately your points probably wouldn’t force rents down, but up.
  Impose costs (min H&S requirements), take away other income streams (tax ring fencing) so rents would likely increase to offset this.
  
  It should help property to stop increasing uncontrollably though, again forcing rents up as speculators/ landlords can’t make as much from this and so want to increase their ROI.
  Also, more people could buy homes, thereby reducing rental stock and forcing up rents.
  
  A good solution to help stop rapid capital gains, but not rents…
  - Rae 6.1.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 11:36 am
    
    Well if house prices end up more reasonable, many of those tenants will buy for themselves perhaps creating a shortage of tenants, then rents will take a nose dive
  - AB 6.1.2
    
    28 May 2016 at 3:35 pm
    
    You would have to accompany those measures with a rent freeze – probably quite a lengthy one. You want to make owning rental properties not worth the effort so they go back on the market for owner-occupiers. Private landlords would take a bath – and you would want to make the bath deeper based on how many rentals they own. The state would have to become the predominant provider of rental accommodation.
    
    Probably it would be messy & chaotic and in some marginal cases unfair. Probably there would be unintended consequences.
    And most likely it would be very damaging politically if the speculative wealth of the middle classes was evaporated in this way. Though part of me would love to hear the bleating, I can’t see anyone doing it.
    - ropata 6.1.2.1
      
      28 May 2016 at 3:44 pm
      
      Make it illegal to *ever* increase rent on a current tenant. Make it illegal to *ever* forcibly end a tenancy (with rare exceptions)
  - The New Student 6.1.3
    
    29 May 2016 at 7:31 pm
    
    cut your losses and offload the thing. Voila, more houses on the market coupled with watered-down demand and decrease in the pool of tenants. It’s really not that complicated
  - Lloyd 6.1.4
    
    30 May 2016 at 12:45 am
    
    Both Amakiwi and Tepidsupport are right. To really drop house prices you have to make renting an uneconomic business. As well as Amakiwis rental rules, rents should be frozen and renters should have the rights of property owners with eviction set as an almost impossible task. Once rental disappears property values will drop rapidly and buying a house to own to live in will again be the norm.
    Rental demand should be met by the government erecting low cost housing. Simple. Sorry. Get rid of the Nats. Then it is simple.
- Lanthanide 6.2
  
  28 May 2016 at 12:09 pm
  
  1. Who is going to pay for the inspections? Who is going to pay for the upgrades? Landlords. Who will then pass the costs on to the tenants.
  
  2. Landlords will just put up the rent to compensate. Tax deductibility of mortgage interest is parallel to what any company would receive on their own loans. Providing rental properties is actually a business. Tax deductibility therefore acts as a subsidy for renters. Now, if you made this apply to new loans started after a certain date (rather than all existing loans), then I think it would make a dent in the sales price of houses and will flow through to reduced rents that way.
  
  3. This would likely result in those particular landlords selling their properties. That may free up more houses for people who are currently renting to buy – or more likely just means the houses will be bought by local landlords instead.
  
  4. I think Labour party’s policy of allowing them to buy new houses only better. It allows for foreign investment to increase our housing stock. Out of your ideas, this is the only one that is seriously likely to reduce rental prices, as it will force the housing stock to grow if foreigners want to invest, and should reduce house prices by damping down on demand, which flows into rents.
  - AmaKiwi 6.2.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 3:26 pm
    
    @ Lantanide
    
    ” I think Labour party’s policy of allowing them to buy new houses only (is) better.”
    
    We need affordable houses, which means small, basic, low priced house (or flats). Rich foreigners building luxurious new houses makes things worse, not better.
    - Visubversa 6.2.1.1
      
      28 May 2016 at 3:55 pm
      
      If you want to know what the rich foreigners are building – take a drive around the new subdivisions around Albany. The houses are all enormous – 6 bedroom, 7 bathroom monstrocities which are crammed into every square metre of usable space on the site. They all look the same and are marketed to other foreigners.
    - Lanthanide 6.2.1.2
      
      28 May 2016 at 5:24 pm
      
      Hmm, this and Visubversa’s reply are definitely points to consider.
      
      I was of the understanding that many foreign investors are buying up apartments and other such things that they ‘know’ which have management structures in place to deal with any required maintenance etc – low hassle investment returns.
      
      But you’re right, the foreigners if they’re going to build houses, are unlikely to be building the basic 3 bedroom 1 bathroom type of houses that we need for many families, instead they’ll be the 220m+ 4-5 bedroom 2-3 bathroom type.
      
      So tweak Labour’s policy further – require that the houses that foreigners build must be at the median house price or lower. Think that might be tricky to police, though.
- Ovid 6.3
  
  28 May 2016 at 2:13 pm
  
  I have read in history books about class war. Now I get to experience it first hand.
  
  A class war has been going on for at least the past two centuries. There have been some wins (the progressive era and social security) and some losses (neoliberalism and the surveillance state) but it’s not over yet.
- AmaKiwi 6.4
  
  28 May 2016 at 6:46 pm
  
  I apologize if I gave the wrong impression earlier (6).
  
  I do have experience of one good landlady and one good landlord. They were the exceptions.
  
  More typical were houses that were leaking, moldy, broken bathroom fixtures, and unfit for human habitation. The rent got raised every year but the landlords (all of whom lived nearby) NEVER set foot on the property, NEVER made a single repair, and NEVER did maintenance. They milked it (and me) for every penny they could get.
  
  If I gave the impression I am concerned about the needs of these leeches, I don’t. If legislation to lower rents and make landlords fix up these animal pens costs them their shirts, they got what they deserve.
whispering kate 7

28 May 2016 at 9:28 am

What a spiteful vindictive response from the PM. Because he knows that he should bring in a Capital Gains Tax and make new immigrants create new builds only, plus a myriad of other tools he has in his toolbox to ease the burden of housing in AK but ideology stops him from doing it, this is the response from him. How does he think Auckland ratepayers are going to pay for all of this infrastructure and why does AK Council have to go the way of the Government and sell an income stream that funds its business with the threat of selling off assets. Dictatorship isn’t far away with his manner of leadership.

This is repeat, a vindictive spiteful, caught in the corner and no way to turn and not getting his own way response – he is a person with low-level development between his ears and nasty to boot. Its time we had some more marches in protest at how he treats the hand that feeds him.
- Brendon Harre -Left wing Liberal 7.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 10:01 am
  
  +1. There was lots of ways the government could have constructively engage with solving the housing crisis -but they repeatedly refuse to take them. Now they are trying to put Councils in an impossible position -forcing councils to be responsible for new developments without giving them the infrastructure resources to do it properly.
  
  You are right -there is a real nasty core to John Key.
  
  P.S As a Cantabrian -our urban development model is not the answer for Auckland -we probably have better land supply -in part due to better geography. But transport/congestion is ridiculous for such a small city. National is leaving an awful legacy for the next government to fix up.
  - Brendon Harre -Left wing Liberal 7.1.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 10:24 am
    
    It is partisan ideological crap that Brownlee refuses to open up the rail corridor in Canterbury for commuter rail to give people another transport option.
    
    The cost would be modest -especially in comparison to the Billions they spend on Roads of National Significance and the benefits much larger.
- Draco T Bastard 7.2
  
  28 May 2016 at 11:46 am
  
  and why does AK Council have to go the way of the Government and sell an income stream that funds its business with the threat of selling off assets.
  
  Because the Tories see that income stream and want it for themselves. It’s nothing but greed and legalised theft.
  
  Dictatorship isn’t far away with his manner of leadership.
  
  We don’t have a democracy but an elected dictatorship but the dictators are now showing their true colours. Hopefully Labour/Greens/NZ1st will come out and say that they will reverse this and do it retrospectively with all loss to the developers.
- Esoteric Pineapples 7.3
  
  29 May 2016 at 7:06 pm
  
  A chorus of boos everywhere ministers meet the public would be nice
Sabine 8

28 May 2016 at 9:28 am

Frankly, Aucklander have known that that was coming for a while now.

But the rest of the country was just to fucking busy to tell us to leave if we don’t like it here or can afford it here.
Fuck they are now gonna pay money to people so that they leave.

How the fuck do you like that NZ. One day this shit is gonna come to a neighbourhood, town, city, rural community near you.

Could this country please understand that Auckland is a. part of New Zealand, and b. Full of New Zealanders and c. is fucked up by an elite that really does not give a flying fuck about you, me and even themselves in the long run.

Fuck yeah, New Zealand, how did you like becoming a Tenant in your own country.
- save nz 8.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 9:38 am
  
  If Dave Henderson’s are examples of Developers to save Auckland on behalf of the government…. from wiki… is anyone else feel they have gone done the rabbit hole into Planet Key of PlunderLand…
  
  David Henderson (born 1953) is an Auckland property developer. He is regarded as one of the city’s most influential businessmen and is said to have development work worth up to NZ$1 billion.
  
  The son of a fitter and turner, he grew up in Milford, and started his empire by renovating old Ponsonby houses. In the 1970s, he opened the Stove Shop, a second-hand dealership in Ponsonby Rd. In 1997 he bought and developed Princes Wharf and has since developed the $100 million Interplex industrial park at Albany, Q City and Q Central apartment block and Precinct apartments.[1]
  
  He was declared bankrupt on 9 June 2011.[2][3]
  
  David Henderson (Christchurch, New Zealand)
  From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
  Not to be confused with David Henderson (Auckland, New Zealand).
  David Ian Henderson
  Occupation Property developer
  Known for Battling with the IRD
  David Henderson is a Christchurch, New Zealand based property developer.
  
  In 1994 he founded the libertarian magazine the Free Radical.[1] He was also a student of Zenith Applied Philosophy, “It really sparked my interest. I found it greatly stimulating and inspiring, immensely so. They got a terribly bad name, a bad rap.”[2]
  
  From 1992 to 1995 he was audited 27 times after claiming a GST refund and the Inland Revenue Department demanded he pay $NZ924,341 in taxes and penalties. He was charged with fraud, his business failed and he was bankrupted and had to sell his house. The IRD eventually conceded that he did not owe it $NZ924,341, and fraud charges against him were dropped. They also admitted that they owed him $NZ64,000.This experience led him to write a book Be Very Afraid: One Man’s Stand Against the IRD. In 2007 his story was made into a film by South Pacific Pictures,[3] entitled We’re Here To Help.
  
  Henderson’s company, Property Ventures Limited is undertook a number of developments including the billion dollar new town, Five Mile, in Queenstown. This failed and the resulting site was known as “Hendo’s hole”[4]
  
  In November 2007 saw the opening in Christchurch of a new style of hotel named HotelSO. This building, acquired by Henderson in 2004, was occupied by the Inland Revenue Department.
  
  Applications were made in the High Court at Christchurch on 16 May 2008 to have Mr Henderson’s Five Mile Holdings and Property Ventures placed in liquidation. [5]
  
  In early August 2008, the Christchurch City Council held a short-notice urgent meeting about sensitive central city property purchases, then on 8 August 2008 announced that it would buy five of Henderson’s properties[6] for approximately $NZ17 million. Henderson was to have first option to buy back the properties. This decision caused much civic controversy.[7]
  
  The High Court in Christchurch placed Henderson in bankruptcy on 29 November 2010.[8][9]
  - ropata 8.1.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 2:22 pm
    
    High-rolling sociopaths like these Henderson dudes escape the consequences of their frauds/theft by convenient bankruptcy laws.
    
    Beneficiaries and students are saddled with a lifetime of crippling debt.
    
    That’s your brighter future, New Zealand
- Wensleydale 8.2
  
  28 May 2016 at 12:06 pm
  
  National have long wanted to treat Auckland like a glorified sock puppet, and this is quite possibly the “crisis” they need to do it. Install the Cameron Brewers of the city in council ensuring the citizens of the “leafy suburbs” are pulling the levers of power, and the property development gravy train is clear to leave the station. Meanwhile, shuffle all the undesirables off to the jobless provinces, where they can continue to collect the unemployment benefit as they slowly decompose in their state homes. Auckland will become one massive gated community, and only “the right sort of people” will be permitted entry. Brighter future, kids! Brighter future!
Richardrawshark 9

28 May 2016 at 9:30 am

Great move . hope they do it. I really do, as Auckland basically is the election hopefully it’s put a few off voting National.
- tc 9.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 9:43 am
  
  They’ll not be bothered too much about the election, plunder is the priority.
  - marty mars 9.1.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 7:26 pm
    
    yep – this is the point – whatever they do they are thinking of how someone (their mates) can make money – that is it. That is the vast majority of their motivation – it has very very very little to do with fixing the problem – they don’t care about the problem, they care about money and sometimes votes, because they (the greater they) make more money if they stay in power, but they never take their eyes off the money.
- save nz 9.2
  
  28 May 2016 at 9:48 am
  
  Only if Labour and Greens don’t run about braying about what a great idea unity plan and zoning changes are. If they do they, they could reverse the situation and the MSM blame Labour and Greens for it in the minds of voters.
  
  Goff and Shearer are bound to help the Natz again with their big mouths.
  
  MSM are already setting housing up to be ‘Labour/Green policy’ – on the one news the other day they had all the parties interviewed about relaxing zoning to bring in affordable housing.
  
  If MSM are interviewing a Labour/Green – it is t to set them up as the fall guys.
  
  Goff and Shearer will sound byte it home for the Natz.
  
  One person we will never see on the issue is John Key, that is because he does not like to associate his face with bad news like housing. Wish the other leaders could be more strategic.
  - ropata 9.2.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 2:47 pm
    
    Rogernome Phil Goff (architect of the TPPA) is a wannabe ACT mole, I don’t know what Shearer thinks he is doing
    - Chooky 9.2.1.1
      
      28 May 2016 at 10:41 pm
      
      Labour is a very compromised Party…this is why it is missing a million
      - Rocco Siffredi 9.2.1.1.1
        
        29 May 2016 at 9:32 am
        
        ROFL, did you lose them down behind the sofa then?
  - Chooky 9.2.2
    
    28 May 2016 at 10:39 pm
    
    +100 save nz…only NZF doesn’t seem to fall into the holes they dig for them
    - Chooky 9.2.2.1
      
      29 May 2016 at 9:43 am
      
      the issue is over- heated immigration, foreigners buying up NZ properties out of proportion to the size and population of our country ….and jonkey nactional selling off existing State houses to property speculators
      
      this is what the opposition should be talking about NOT jonkey’s eating up valuable land , slum housing for New Zealanders ….and supporting jonkey’s unravelling democracy in Auckland
- Ovid 9.3
  
  28 May 2016 at 2:23 pm
  
  I couldn’t find Auckland-specific figures, but the voter turnout in the last local body elections nationally was 42%. People just don’t give a fuck.
  - tinfoilhat 9.3.1
    
    29 May 2016 at 9:40 am
    
    34.5% last time around.
    
    http://www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/EN/AboutCouncil/HowCouncilWorks/Elections/Documents/2016SocialcapitalandvoterturnoutWebsterJun2014aut.pdf
  - Anne 9.3.2
    
    29 May 2016 at 10:35 am
    
    As an Aucklander, I don’t think its as simple as “people not giving a fuck”. You will find that the majority of Auckland L.B. voters reside in the well established and/or leafy suburbs whereas the poor and struggling in Sth. Auckland and parts of West Auckland are less likely to vote. They have more pressing issues to deal with like … struggling to keep a roof over their heads, paying the bills and feeding and clothing their families – not to mention often coping with serious health issues caused by poor housing conditions and lack of educational opportunities.
    
    From their perspective, who can blame them for not bothering to vote. Nobody cares about them.
dukeofurl 10

28 May 2016 at 9:31 am

Looks like they will screw the process about creating National Policy Statements as well

‘A national policy statement is usually developed in four stages: scoping, drafting, consultation and implementation. In most cases reference groups will be set up with representatives from key agencies. Reporting back to ministers occurs after scoping has been completed and before formal consultation.”

http://www.mfe.govt.nz/rma/rma-legislative-tools/national-policy-statements
Tarquin 11

28 May 2016 at 9:49 am

I don’t know if I agree with Key, but let’s face it Auckland is basically a bloated fiefdom run by bureaucrats who don’t give a toss what the citizens think – they’re only hostages anyway. Free up the land and limit rate rises to the rate of inflation. Force all councils back to their core business instead of empire and monument building.
- Lloyd 11.1
  
  30 May 2016 at 1:04 am
  
  Tarquin
  Of course you agree with John Key.
  You are regurgitating all the crap the Nats put out.
  If the bureaucrats don’t give a toss, who set them up? John Key and Rodney Hyde. Not the bureaucrats.
  Only problem for John is he didn’t get the colour of mayor he was expecting. Everything else you don’t like about Auckland you can blame on the present government. You are hostage to John.
  How are you going to free up land? Do you want the Council to speculate on development and install all the infrastructure that will be needed if the city is to expand outwards? You realise this is not core business?
  “Freeing up” land will cause rate rises! arrgh…
  
  By the way you do realise that Aucklanders have some of the lowest rates in New Zealand…
  - You_Fool 11.1.1
    
    30 May 2016 at 9:05 am
    
    The fun thing is, if John and Rodney had got the mayor they had wanted, we would be in the exact same mess but they wouldn’t have the tools they are trying to use to fix it – i.e. there would be no assets to sell for infrastructure as they would have already been sold to their rich mates to pay for rate reductions for those same rich mates, who are controlling the development build rate anyway in such a way to maximise their profits by building the bare minimum acceptable quality house at the slowest acceptable rate.
    
    God bless Len Brown for ensuring at least we have a way to pay our way out of the National/Act mess – even if really it makes everything worse! Just imagine if Corrupt and crooked John Banks had become mayor in 2010… it makes you glad for Len, no matter his failings.
Incognito 12

28 May 2016 at 9:56 am

John Key wants to finish what he and Rodney Hide started. But Len Brown threw a spanner in the works and now Phil Goff is threatening to do the same again. Ironically, many people, including Aucklanders, would not have a bar of Brown or Goff.
- dukeofurl 12.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 10:30 am
  
  Brown won two elections, so most voters chose him. Put that in your pipe
  - newsense 12.1.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 10:59 am
    
    by people he doesn’t mean voters. ergo this post
  - tinfoilhat 12.1.2
    
    28 May 2016 at 11:38 am
    
    … most voters who bothered to vote chose him, the turnout for local body elections in Auckland is woeful.
    - dukeofurl 12.1.2.1
      
      28 May 2016 at 6:11 pm
      
      The people who vote are like a very large polling sample of the whole population. so instead of 3-4% margin of error of 1000 people poll with 40% turnout you get 0.01% margin of error that the voters represent the whole population.
      - tinfoilhat 12.1.2.1.1
        
        29 May 2016 at 9:42 am
        
        That’s a bit of a long bow..
        
        You_Fool 12.1.2.1.1.1
        
        30 May 2016 at 9:07 am
        
        Just remember the x% of voters vs population when discussing National and Act as well – since they are the ones imposing these new rules on Auckland – so we still are not at a majority of people wanting this either…
upnorth 13

28 May 2016 at 10:55 am

I totally support the government view on this and I hope they push it through.

Just backs up Tywford so I don’t know why this post is even up?
- One Anonymous Bloke 13.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 12:03 pm
  
  Someone’s got to: where would incompetent right wing trash be without dupes to mindlessly swallow and regurgitate their billshit? When your lying Prime Minister changes his tune you’ll parrot that too.
- ropata 13.2
  
  28 May 2016 at 1:10 pm
  
  is that because you
  a) support billionaires looting NZ assets
  b) prefer crony capitalism/feudalism over democracy
  c) are a drooling incompetent RWNJ
  ?
Draco T Bastard 14

28 May 2016 at 10:59 am

says Council may have to sell assets to fund infrastruce

And there we have it – the whole purpose of the city restructure forced upon us by a dictatorial bunch of Tories. The scum are after our asset so as to turn us into serfs and increase their own wealth and power.

This truly is a return to feudalism.
- AmaKiwi 14.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 6:50 pm
  
  + 1
- Chooky 14.2
  
  28 May 2016 at 10:44 pm
  
  +100
Mike Bond 15

28 May 2016 at 11:15 am

So National have been blamed all along for the housing crisis in Auckland. They have continually said it is the local councils fault. They now want to use string arm tactics and still get blamed for it? The opposition will moan about anything and everything National does and that is why they will remain in power for a long time to come. Where is an opposition that is demonstrating that they ill be better for New Zealand? Currently that opposition does not exist.
- upnorth 15.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 11:34 am
  
  Labour support is crumbling badly. Andrew Little is at 9% – when you have ineffective opposition you have poor democracy.
  Len Brown is Labour so lets not kid ourselves here. Phil Goff may win which means Auckland have been under a left wing leader for near on a decade – you go figure.
  Classic labour big taxes (in this case rates) and big spend – outcpme as per normal run away inflation and soon to be higher interest rates (debt downgrade will increase interest rates on debt meaning higher rates (ratepayers form of taxes)
  
  Open up the boundary and lets go for it. Will decrease ariable farming which the Greens will love and it solves their housing crisis issue
  - Rae 15.1.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 11:42 am
    
    Some of that arable land is some of the best horticulture land in the country, if that is not protected then Auckland and the government are stark staring mad
    - save nz 15.1.1.1
      
      28 May 2016 at 11:58 am
      
      For Fucks sake we have plenty of land in Auckland, (just no public transport) – no one is building houses on it that are affordable, why should they, it is about making profit! Most people are just renovating existing houses, bigger or making big houses which surprisingly are not affordable!
      
      And the new apartments and builds are more expensive than existing stock.
      
      Rents are high because who would want to be a landlord? There is a shortage of both houses and landlords.
      
      Culturally some investors like to keep the places they buy empty and so do speculators who flip them over, so less rentals. None of these people pay any taxes now, let alone declare the rents even if they do rent them. We do have a capital gains tax in place if the person does it for the intention of making a profit and a speculator tax but it does not seem to be inforced and IRD people are being cut.
      
      Also why is there so much demand on houses? Government policy on record immigration. It is the usual deception from National, blaming demand which they themselves have created – even having the property investor category to get a NZ passport and citizenship for new migrants to buy property here.
      
      Why do we need migration, because otherwise the country will work out we are bankrupt – there is no growth or new jobs or any other way to grow. There has been no investment for a decade in ‘real’ income generation. They are just borrowing and flogging stuff off and pretending all is well.
      
      The reality is most existing property in NZ would cost more to rebuild than to buy. That means property itself is not unaffordable (i.e. rebuild is more expensive not less therefore overpriced existing houses is not the factor but the cost of building) but there are other factors at play which are too many to mention but poor wages are a big factor and the cost of building.
      - ropata 15.1.1.1.1
        
        28 May 2016 at 12:52 pm
        
        It’s not about housing people, it’s about turning Auckland into a giant casino for foreign speculators to make money. Houses aren’t for living in, they are for ripping off stupid (gnat voting) kiwis and extracting rent from the poor.
        
        marty mars 15.1.1.1.1.1
        
        28 May 2016 at 7:28 pm
        
        + 1 yep that is all horribly true.
        
        Chooky …
        
        29 May 2016 at 9:50 am
        
        …and what is wrong with renovating and doing up existing State houses?…many of them are made with good wood are are repairable
        
        …NZ youth should be trained in carpentry and set to work on renovating existing State houses for the homeless …and these should be kept by the government in State ownership
        
        ( it a crime that State housing is being sold off when there are homeless people living in cars and garages)
        
        btw…seems like jonkey nactional is trying to erase all reminders of his own childhood in a State house..instead of being proud of it
        
        leftie …
        
        29 May 2016 at 1:17 pm
        
        Good points. Totally agree Chooky.
  - ankerawshark 15.1.2
    
    28 May 2016 at 12:13 pm
    
    Disagree Upnorth. Think Labour have been doing a great job as opposition…..
    
    DC with his exposure of the Argentinian brothers who bought NZ land for a start. Sue Moroney’s paid parental bill and Phil Tyford v Nick Smith………..no contest there.
    
    Norman Kirk’s support consistently low in opposition…………………….
    
    One thing about Andrew Little, I really trust him. I think he is genuine………
    
    All the opposition have to do is keep going, keep batting the ball.
    
    The msm has started to do their job by exposing the housing scandal that is happening in Auckland (I prefer the word scandal than crisis. Crisis can sometime be an accident no one’s fault. I am afraid next years election is in the hands of the msm………………..
    - Chooky 15.1.2.1
      
      29 May 2016 at 9:54 am
      
      DC, Phil Twyford and Sue Maroney are the exception….and are on the outer of Little’s Labour Party ( Parker is also good on water)
      
      ….any of those three would make good leaders of the Labour Party….and get rid of the dead wood and bring in a new caucus imo
      - leftie 15.1.2.1.1
        
        29 May 2016 at 1:31 pm
        
        Too close to the election, besides Goff and Cosgrove are leaving. Shearer, who should be in the National party, has been put in his place. Completely disagree with you that DC, Phil Twyford and Sue Maroney are on the outer of Little’s Labour Party, don’t know where you got that idea from, because Andrew Little as leader has let them shine, and has given them full credit for their work. Iain Lees-Galloway is another Labour mp who shines.
    - leftie 15.1.2.2
      
      29 May 2016 at 1:23 pm
      
      Completely agree with you Ankerawshark, so was Helen Clark’s for example, 2%. Polling ratings go up when in office.
  - millsy 15.1.3
    
    28 May 2016 at 7:00 pm
    
    List of libaries you want to close and parks you want to sell off please.
  - leftie 15.1.4
    
    29 May 2016 at 1:11 pm
    
    Boundaries are not the cause of the housing crisis Upnorth, and you conveniently forget what Brown inherited. How long was key’s crooked fraudster mate John Banks mayor? He tripled Auckland’s debt and Auckland had nothing to show for it, and what was the cost left by Key after he hijacked Auckland and formed the super city? Brown has been hamstrung by central government and the Nats inside council, it could have been a hell of a lot worse for Auckland if John Banks had of got back in. John Palino is just as bad. Any Aucklander with an ounce of principles wouldn’t ever have a bar of those Johns now, or in the future.
- ankerawshark 15.2
  
  28 May 2016 at 12:07 pm
  
  Um….Labour have a housing policy for Auckland that sounds pretty sound. As opposed to National who have no policy as such.. That’s where the opposition is.
- Stuart Munro 15.3
  
  28 May 2016 at 4:14 pm
  
  Tell the truth – not even the craziest Gnats think Nick Smith has any idea whatsoever what he is doing. Housing is failing catastrophically and Key is determined that the blame shall fall elsewhere.
  
  This time though it isn’t going to go away. Housing is serious, and the Gnats don’t have a plan that could work even on planet Key. Dumping the blame on the council won’t get Key off the hook this time – people want to see him get off his arse and actually do something.
  
  Not run his stupid mouth off. Not blame someone else. Build some houses, build some apartments, do something sensible about regional development and tell his tax-evading target immigrants to gtfo.
  
  Key won’t do that – never done a day’s work in his life and not about to start now. There will be tears before bedtime.
  - Chooky 15.3.1
    
    29 May 2016 at 10:02 am
    
    +100 Stuart Munroe ….and we don’t want jonkey nact to spread the problems of Auckland into the provinces…this is Nact policy ( NZ turned into a slum Bangkok or Hong Kong ….as long as it gets him and his mates mega rich)
lprent 16

28 May 2016 at 11:59 am

This isn’t Canterbury after an earthquake. Aucklanders will tear Key and National apart.

The problem hasn’t been the council, although there are some gutless fools there. The problem is directly related to the actions of this fuckwit government and previous National screwups.

1. This government imposed the cockup solution of a fully merged council on us – essentially ignoring the royal commission’s plan that would have caused a lot less disruption. Doing that task caused massive delays because of the merge

2. National governments have not maintaining a state accommodation building program and the building infrastructure that went with it.

3. A previous National government did the massive screwup with their deregulation of the building industry back in the 1990s that caused the diversion of building resources into fixing leaky buildings over the last decade. They would up fixing buildings rather than

and so on.

Why would we want these kinds of bumbling idiots trying to directly run Auckland. Their proxies in C&R were bad enough. But could you imagine someone as incompetent as those south island idiots of Brownlee and Nick Smith up here. They seem to barely have enough ability to scratch their own arses.
- upnorth 16.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 12:03 pm
  
  Incorrect – I have had the privilege of reading the Royal Commission on the Super City. Took an active role in reading and understanding.
  
  The outcome was simple – one council to make one decision
  
  Pretty simple and yet put a Labour man in charge and as per usual goes to crap.
  
  The government and Phil Twyford are correct – get rid of the boundaries.
  - leftie 16.1.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 12:44 pm
    
    The government doesn’t give a shit about boundaries, it wants to flog off Auckland’s assets in a fire sale to their crony mates. Do you live in Auckland Upnorth? I do, and I can tell you Aucklanders hate the “Supercity” they see it as a big rorting fail.
    - Nessalt 16.1.1.1
      
      28 May 2016 at 3:00 pm
      
      actually, Aucklanders see the council as a big rotting fail, not the supercity. the idea was right and the execution was fine. it was the big muppet brown who mucked it all up to keep his house price on the up and up.
      
      The one good thing about the supercity is that the council don’t know much of anything. so you can slide almost anything past them if you know the lingo.
      - ropata 16.1.1.1.1
        
        28 May 2016 at 3:53 pm
        
        so nothing to do with central govt policies of record immigration, no proper taxes on speculators, running down state housing, leaky buildings, or the GFC?
        
        simple minded dimwits like you are the main problem with NZ democracy. not poor old Len
      - ropata 16.1.1.1.2
        
        28 May 2016 at 4:11 pm
        
        ultimately the buck stops with the Gnats and their free market deception. it is all about screwing over the average kiwi to enrich the top few % gnat supporters. and using the dirty politics machine to pull the wool and blame others.
        
        Draco T Bastard 16.1.1.1.2.1
        
        28 May 2016 at 9:02 pm
        
        +1
      - leftie 16.1.1.1.3
        
        28 May 2016 at 4:30 pm
        
        You don’t know Aucklanders Nessalt, they do see the supercity as a rorting fail. John key’s idea is rotten to the core, and nothing about its execution was “fine” and its National that is behind keeping the “house price on the up and up”
        
        There is nothing good about John Key’s supercity, and the organizations he set up, that operate within it, but are outside of council control and rules. As posted previously, its all about an “Auckland take-over, the biggest land and asset grab in New Zealand’s history.”
      - Ad 16.1.1.1.4
        
        28 May 2016 at 5:43 pm
        
        Even if you were right, which you’re not, firing the Council and erasing the right to vote in five months won’t make a bit of difference to the housing crisis.
        
        Only central government has the means, agencies, capital and legal capacity to solve the housing crisis. You could replace the entire Council, wake up the next day, watch the same number of people waking up from inside their cars and bridges, and realize that Key prefers a short-term nuclear option to actual policy that uses everyone including the Council to fix the problem.
      - Draco T Bastard 16.1.1.1.5
        
        28 May 2016 at 9:02 pm
        
        actually, Aucklanders see the council as a big rotting fail, not the supercity. the idea was right and the execution was fine. it was the big muppet brown who mucked it all up to keep his house price on the up and up.
        
        Nope. It was the wrong idea implemented badly because of the stupid ideology of ACT and National. Brown has actually done his best to ameliorate the worst effects but the government hamstrung him, and any other mayor, from the get go.
        
        Quite simply: National sabotaged Auckland so that they could force Auckland to sell our assets.
        
        That didn’t work quite as well as they had originally planned because Auckland voted in a left council rather than the RWNJ one that National wanted them to. Now they’re forcing the sales through central government.
        
        The entire present government should be jailed for treason.
        
        ropata 16.1.1.1.5.1
        
        28 May 2016 at 10:04 pm
        
        +1 precisely. big business has been trying to turn Auckland (and its assets) into their fiefdom for decades and been stymied by the inconvenient democratic will of the people. In short, the plan is to plunder Auckland’s wealth and transfer it to elites. They will take the water, the ports, the roads, the rates, and change the bylaws to benefit themselves, while ordinary ratepayers get ripped off mercilessly.
        
        Green MP Sue Kedgely got closest to the truth in May 2009 when she accused Act Party Leader and Minister of Local Government Rodney Hide of staging “Rogernomics part two” by passing a law under urgency to strip Auckland’s local councils of their powers and transferring control to the Auckland Transition Agency (ATA) peopled with Rodney Hide’s cronies. She was right, but Rogernomics part two extends well beyond the transitional agency. The entire concept of the supercity is based around business running the city for the benefit of business. It represents the culmination of a well-orchestrated campaign over several years by the likes of the Employers and Manufacturers Association and the Auckland Chamber of Commerce for control of the region’s local government policy and community assets to the value of some $28 billion. The second round of Rogernomics will really wind up once business interests dominate the region-wide council.
  - ropata 16.1.2
    
    28 May 2016 at 12:48 pm
    
    ??? if you agreed with the royal commission’s super city plan then surely you must admit that Rodney HIde’s rogue “transition agency” cronies were a blight on local democracy and a big “fuck you” to Auckland voters.
    - leftie 16.1.2.1
      
      28 May 2016 at 1:52 pm
      
      “John Banks is clearly part of the inner cabal that Rodney Hide and John Key are working with to achieve their Auckland take-over, the biggest land and asset grab in New Zealand’s history.”
      
      “Their agenda has been in play since 2006 when John Key’s private members bill gave the first indication that the National Party was intent on foisting a super city structure on Auckland, and has gathered momentum in recent times, culminating with Rodney Hide’s ‘under the radar’ Cabinet paper which paves the way to privatisation and stifles public input into local government decision-making.”
      
      Endorsing Banks for super mayor a super blunder
      Monday, 8 June 2009, from Scoop.
      
      <a href="http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/AK0906/S00079.htm
  - gnomic 16.1.3
    
    28 May 2016 at 9:51 pm
    
    “The government and Phil Twyford are correct – get rid of the boundaries.”
    
    They are dead wrong. If more sprawl is the answer, it’s the wrong question.
    
    That’s the problem.
  - Lloyd 16.1.4
    
    30 May 2016 at 1:18 am
    
    Jeez.
    Inside the RUB is where you can have sewer lines connected. Anything outside the lines will take years of major investment to be usable for high density housing. If you aren’t going to use the land for high density housing don’t bullshit us with arguments that the land is needed to eliminate the housing crisis. All you want is to sell land at much higher value than you bought it. Outcome will be big houses with septic tanks on big sections and horrible traffic problems.
- Karen 16.2
  
  28 May 2016 at 12:34 pm
  
  +1 lprent
  
  The Nats have created Auckland’s problems. As well as the debacle they created by loosening building regulations in the 1990s they also decided to sell off state houses and subsidise private landlords instead. The last Labour Government managed to build more than 8000 state houses but the Nats got back in and have sold off thousands and deliberately left many empty. According to the Herald there are 2200 empty state houses in Auckland alone.
  
  Property speculators are also a major problem and often leave houses and land empty. There need to be a hefty financial cost for doing this. The Nats aren’t willing to do so as these speculators are their supporters.
  - save nz 16.2.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 3:25 pm
    
    Apparently National have sold off 2700 state houses. That is a lot of social housing gone and now lecturing Auckland about affordable houses!
    
    Does anyone know how many in Auckland were sold?
- left for dead 16.3
  
  28 May 2016 at 5:35 pm
  
  They seem to barely have enough ability to scratch their own arses.
  
  Be fair lprent Brownlie honestly cant reach his arse, Smith, well he’s just learning to dress himself, then the training wheels might come off christ the man’s only been in parliament 25-26 years.
- Pat 16.4
  
  29 May 2016 at 10:06 am
  
  please take our S.I. idiots Brownlee and Smith, we don’t want them…..well even throw in $5k for each one.
  - leftie 16.4.1
    
    29 May 2016 at 1:34 pm
    
    Lol Pat, but lets make them pay the $5K out of their own pockets !!
Katipo 17

28 May 2016 at 12:01 pm

In a supposedly first world country providing adequate shelter for all should be fundamental, and the and no matter how much you dislike “some bludger and their kids getting a free house” the cost to our health, education & legal systems for not doing so is many times higher. There is no shortage of bedrooms in Auckland. This issue has more to do with growing inequality than land supply. The less egalitarian we become the worse this situation gets, with proportionately fewer people owning the land in the prime locations as high density slums are created on the fringe.
As in naturesociety, society ‘abhorrs an inequality’ and the longer it takes us to address this the more severe and the correction will be.
- Draco T Bastard 17.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 9:06 pm
  
  +1
WILD KATIPO 18

28 May 2016 at 12:13 pm

Hmmmm….wheres all the good comedy when we needs it, guv?

They weren’t shy about it back in the day…
- millsy 18.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 7:04 pm
  
  That was pretty cool.
  
  Amazing what could be done with 1940’s technology (ie a guy sitting out the back with a pair of scissors and a roll of tape)
ropata 19

28 May 2016 at 12:38 pm

disaster capitalism 101:
1. manufacture crisis (or use an existing one)
2. throw out democracy
3. install cronies
4. loot!!

http://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2015/06/29/capitalism-devolved-looting/
- leftie 19.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 12:47 pm
  
  Yep, that’s it in a nutshell Ropata.
- Paul 19.2
  
  28 May 2016 at 1:18 pm
  
  Naomi Klein – The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism
  - leftie 19.2.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 4:37 pm
    
    Watched that a few years back, its an awesome documentary, and should be compulsory viewing.
- SherylJ 19.3
  
  28 May 2016 at 2:24 pm
  
  That’s it, in a nutshell! Well said ropata.
- Nessalt 19.4
  
  28 May 2016 at 3:02 pm
  
  but it’s always labour who are declaring a crises? is it because they are useless and can’t get to stage 2 that the crises keep on resolving themselves?
  - ropata 19.4.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 3:22 pm
    
    yes, the leftwing fools hold onto a quaint notion of democracy for the people
  - leftie 19.4.2
    
    28 May 2016 at 4:44 pm
    
    What “crises keep on resolving themselves?” You appear to be in denial Nessalt.
John shears 20

28 May 2016 at 1:11 pm

Up North
upnorth 16.1
28 May 2016 at 12:03 pm

“Incorrect – I have had the privilege of reading the Royal Commission on the Super City. Took an active role in reading and understanding.”

Sorry I disagree with you Upnorth and with the use of the word Democracy at the start of this post.

The current Auckland City was not formed by a Democratic process that was done by the Royal Commission that Up North refers to above.

BUT what we got was a multi city amalgamation devised by John Key’s crony , the Act member Rodney Hide after their tea cup affair. They threw the Commissions report in the garbage bin, the result of a long period if consultation and investigation, and then in a few months came up with the disaster that was forced upon Aucklanders. Len Brown and the elected Councillors have made a reasonable fist of trying to make it work.

Just one example of a change that will cost Auckland for many years was allowing Watercare to NOT be responsible for Stormwater. The Commission was quite clear that the 3 Waters , Potable Waste & Storm under one management was the best option. There are plenty of other examples , the multiple levels of management separating the AHB from the Council is another classic example.

John Key’s National Party does not like Democracy it means they have to listen and discuss matters.
- ropata 20.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 1:30 pm
  
  +1. If upnorth actually read the supercity report as s/he claimed, s/he would realise that the plan was OK, but the implementation by NatCorp™ and Rortney was a complete travesty
  - One Anonymous Bloke 20.1.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 2:13 pm
    
    Upnorth could easily be replaced by a sign reading: “I agree with the Prime Minister”. No-one would notice the difference.
    - stunnedmullet 20.1.1.1
      
      28 May 2016 at 3:00 pm
      
      Haw haw haw..
  - upnorth 20.1.2
    
    28 May 2016 at 4:32 pm
    
    Lol I know more – even did a submission
    - leftie 20.1.2.1
      
      28 May 2016 at 5:13 pm
      
      Lol Upnorth, obviously you don’t, you are nothing more than a shill for John key and his government of corruption.
    - Incognito 20.1.2.2
      
      28 May 2016 at 5:45 pm
      
      Overinflated ego and superiority complex manifesting through a condescending attitude towards others.
      
      Please provide a link to your submission so that we judge it for ourselves on its merits and whether you are entitled to have bragging rights here on TS.
Ad 21

28 May 2016 at 1:42 pm

Greg Presland in his blog has an excellent point of origin of our current housing to crisis: the claps of second tier financing , and with them over a dozen major housing construction companies.

See: http://www.gregpresland.com

He also points to this harshly misplaced blame:

“Blaming a plan that is not even in effect yet and threatening to replace elected representatives with commissioners is not a civilized way to deal with the largest local authority in the country.”

But we also need to clean out this Council with better Councillors, like Greg Presland himself.
- Cricklewood 21.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 5:07 pm
  
  Other overlooked issue is that it’s not politcally expeadiant to attempt to address it in a meaning full way. Basically the massive capital gains and subsequent borrowings are driving the economy and keeping the tax take up.
  A large amount of my work is from professional people who purchased 10-15 years ago fairly small mortgage left and often upwards of 600k in capital gains. They tend to remortgage around 2-300k and do the reno or put in the swimming pool etc.
  
  Choke the capital gain and the houses of cards that makes up or economy falls over then you get voted out….
  - Ad 21.1.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 5:31 pm
    
    If the MSM keep this up, and housing/rent cements itself as the new vectorial language for discussing poverty, in a middle class language that regular voters understand, then Key knows that his best shot at escape is to offload blame as hard and fast as he can.
    
    It just won’t work. Key and this government can’t solve the accelerating burn of the housing market. Sacrificing Auckland Council will only make the pyre burn higher.
    
    And even if they tried a further actual public sector intervention – as in the Tamaki Transformation Project – it would be too slow to make a major difference. They needed a hundred Hobsonvilles going right now, but they have deliberately privatized and liquefied more and more of the public housing stock, including that of Auckland Council some years ago.
    
    I can see the whole market burning around me; almost no one younger than me can get in. The bracket who can get into this market are going to get older and older, until this FIRE economy consumes the hopes of even most of the elderly.
    
    This FIRE economy is going to burn this government to ash. Along with it goes the schadenfreude of monetarism that they themselves instigated.
    - Cricklewood 21.1.1.1
      
      28 May 2016 at 5:49 pm
      
      It will burn this and likely subsequent governments.
      It’s so out of hand now that any opposition parties would be well advised to be very cautious around any promises made about ‘solving’ the problem.
      You either address the issue in a meaningful way and tank the Auckland economy or fail to ‘solve’ the problem in a voters eyes neither are particularly desirable for a newly elected govt.
      
      I think best we can hope for is to slow price rises through a suite of measures and undertake a massive infrastructure build in terms of public transport as there is no point expanding the city if you cant get the people in. My preference is for bus infrastructure as they can service commutes in a more flexible manor. Going to take 20 years easily for a softish landing from this and anything else could be disasterous.
      - Ad 21.1.1.1.1
        
        28 May 2016 at 7:30 pm
        
        My preference is for the full Labour Party housing policy to be enacted.
        Build, build, and build. Sort out the tax instruments once you start shifting the first furniture in.
        
        In transport, my preference is for the Auckland Transport One Network system to be implemented far faster than is currently funded. This includes the continuing dominance of buses, but with enhanced rail systems as well.
Ad 22

28 May 2016 at 1:43 pm

Collapse. In 2008-09.
feijoa 23

28 May 2016 at 1:45 pm

Great comments all you Standardistas.
I only wish all the people of NZ could read these comments, and I really wish Labour and the Green would hammer the Nacts on this.

It closely resembles the ACC “crisis”, which amazingly ( well, not yet anyway ), didn’t lead to a complete sell off to private insurance companies

I’m sure people can think of other examples
- seeker 23.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 2:25 pm
  
  Good comment feijoa @ 1.45pm
  Didn’t Nick Smith create the ACC ‘crisis’? Is that his roll in government – crisis fomenter? I this the 21st century equivalent of a ‘witchfinder general’
  
  He is very good at it. Crisis after crisis follows Nick. A through and through true blue poverty creator.
  
  How proud he and his colleagues in this government will be of themselves and their lives as they lie on their deathbeds…… and possibly contemplate how many ‘earlier than necessary’ ones they created for their fellow countrymen.
- Incognito 23.2
  
  28 May 2016 at 6:32 pm
  
  I only wish all the people of NZ could read these comments
  
  Since TS is freely accessible to all people with internet access I’d say that, in fact, all the people of NZ could indeed read these comments.
  
  It doesn’t harm to leave a comment on the NZ Herald site from time to time …
  
  The real question is on how to organise people to join forces and get rid of this obviously anti-democratic government before our Democracy is eroded so much that it’ll be too late.
greywarshark 24

28 May 2016 at 2:44 pm

Key seems a snake and brought to mind Nagini Lord Voldemort’s animal. Behind Key
there must be many Voldemorts.
- gnomic 24.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 10:03 pm
  
  The smirking weasel is not a nice guy. Nor even very bright. But with the help of polls he appeals to the group of NZers who are doing pretty well thank you very much under the current regime. He masquerades as a funny guy, for people with a Nat frame of mind at least. And at the end of the day he can be comfortable with the most dire of outcomes for the little people because he is fully vested. And will wind up as Sir John. A knight just like his hero, the late Sir Robert Muldoon.
ropata 25

28 May 2016 at 3:24 pm

Greg Presland’s tweet should be in the main post ..

Govt blames Auckland Council for GFC, leaky buildings and heavy immigration levels, Commissioners threatened https://t.co/9umIbeIz57— Greg Presland (@GregPresland) May 27, 2016
Enviro Gal 26

28 May 2016 at 3:27 pm

STAND UP
FIGHT BACK Auckland.
We have a Government with no answers to the
problems that they have created: bullying and buffoonary are not
leadership.
- Ad 26.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 5:33 pm
  
  The best preparation for a change of central government is a change of local government across all our major cities, who actively resist this government.
  
  It can be done, and it’s coming to a New Zealand city near you.
Observer Toke 27

28 May 2016 at 3:51 pm

. ” Screw democracy – Auckland to get the Canterbury treatment”

. Well may you say Screw Democracy Anthony Robins. But Auckland gets it much easier than many towns and cities in New Zealand. For a start Aucklanders have Hospitals.

Housing prices throughout the nation are rising horiffically as Auckland people cash in on their $million houses push out of , crimanal, drug addicted, violent Auckland, They buy much cheaper better houses in Tauranga – and in every town in the country. The locals of course don’t have Auckland purses.

Auckland has been a hell of a mess for the better part of two centuries. It likes itself with an ego that knows no bounds. South of Pukekohe, Aucklanders are not respected. They are not wanted.

When Winston Peters, Andrew Little and Meturia get into power they must first of all look after the Towns and Cities of New Zealand. Let Auckland fix itself.

After all, the forgotten towns of NZ have to soldier on without any assistance. Have to wait and travel a hundred and more KMs for Health Treatments. Have to pay exorbitant monies to banks and stinking landlords.

A new Government must stop Immigratation. Must heavily tax the wealthy. Must keep Aucklanders in their own crap. They are not welcome in Aotearoa.
Once was Tim 28

28 May 2016 at 3:51 pm

Dat dear demockrissy is jiss so damned inconvient ain’t it! Local representation – yeah/nah….the facade of lekted representatives somehow controlling the admin wing of the corporatised council: yeah/nah
Central Control herr Commandant!! Dress it up the best way you can. That Nick Smith has Green creds – we’ll give him a shot at it. FAIL
Pulla Bent has pulled herself up by her bootstraps – give her a shot. FAIL
Chris Finlayson moight jiss appeal to the rainbow lektrit. FAIL
Anne Tolley … FAIL
etc.
etc.
etc.
Funny how they can’t bring themselves to ask the obvious question (WHY).

Talk about the Big Con!. I bet Gordon McGlaughlan never imagined it’d amount to issues other than those economic.

The harder they rise, the harder they fall. Let the games begin – really. It’s all so self-defeating it’d be funny (if it wasn’t so serious).

There are signs the captured neo-lib Labourites are beginning to awaken, alongside some of those staunch half decent Natzis.
Personally I’ll find it bloody hard to offer any sympathy when the shit hits the fan and they’re all busy claiming victimhood, with all that “I was only following orders” kaka.

Given the apathy, the manipulation, the spin, the capturing (of even once-were HALF decent people heading institutions such as the SIS and GCSB) of people, I’ll be finding it bloody hard to shed a tear – it’ll probably be more like a smirk on some black humour reality TV show (going forward)
Penny Bright 29

28 May 2016 at 4:27 pm

In my view, PM John Key should NOT have used the “c” word – “commissioners”.

Four months out from the Auckland local government elections???

If PM John Key thinks concerned Aucklanders are going to put up with that idea – best he think again.

In my view, PM John Key should BACK OFF and BUTT OUT!

There IS a fightback being organised ….

This control of Auckland by Wellington and corporates MUST stop.

Enough of this ‘democracy for developers’!

More news soon when some planning details are confirmed – but concerned Aucklanders – get ready to STAND UP and be counted!

Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
- Sabine 29.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 4:35 pm
  
  Penny,
  
  frankly, he does not give a shit.
  
  To many concerned Aucklanders have sold and shipped out. Mission accomplished.
  To many unconcerned Aucklanders have moved in – many from oversees – Mission accomplished.
  
  All they need is a big board that tells them to “Party Vote National” so they know what to tick on the ballot and here you go.
  
  Fuck, is this country really devoid of any imagination?
  
  This is the intended outcome. And there are not enough Aucklanders left in the City.
  They either have moved, or are planning to move, or will be paid to move. And the others are so transient they don’t even appear on an electoral roll anymore as they have not had a stable address in the last several years.
  - Observer Toke 29.1.1
    
    28 May 2016 at 4:56 pm
    
    .
    . Hi Sabine
    
    . Using Mandarin, what is:
    
    . “Pay the National Party big money and get a lovely house and John Key’s special help if you are in danger of going to Gaol”
    
    . Likewise: “Vote for nice man who only tugs little blonde Girls”
    
    . Also: “Please choose any house you like. Ten houses if you like lots. Nice man will help you get rid of tennants. He very pleased with Asian. Good or Bad.”
    
    PS: I should have asked Barfoot and Thompson.
    - greywarshark 29.1.1.1
      
      29 May 2016 at 12:29 pm
      
      Observer Toke
      You are likely to be right that Asian people look kindly on John Key et al, and vice versa. But Key’s vice extends widely amongst his class of people with awkward amounts of excess money that they have to park somewhere in good reliable, solid assets.
      
      This includes wealthy Kiwis, Australians etc. It is a group of special people with special problems worldwide. They probably have a secret society representing them, with a special handshake or tattoo or exclusive expensive watch only they can source, perhaps they get together at the meetings of the Bilderberg society.
      
      Bilderberg Group – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bilderberg_Group
      The Bilderberg Group, Bilderberg conference, Bilderberg meetings, or Bilderberg Club is an annual private conference of 120 to 150 people of the European and North American political elite, experts from industry, finance, academia, and the media, established in 1954.
      
      It is too simple to point accusing fingers at the latest in a line of sufferers of the Affluenza virus, that really got going in NZ when white settlers brought their individualistic and capitalistic culture. They proceeded to achieve capital accretion, with a break mid 20th century when it seemed that we lived in a society well-knit and advancing as a nation of joint endeavour and concern.
      
      But the Affluenza virus dis-ease causes an endless itching and scratching coming from the stress of having and accumulating so much more money than is needed to enable one to live a relatively simple and enjoyable life as part of humanity.
      - Observer Toke 29.1.1.1.1
        
        31 May 2016 at 11:30 am
        
        .
        Hi Greywarshark
        
        . I enjoyed your piece.
        
        . Affluenza is a brilliant word and it makes sure that carriers of the virus do not infect decent members of society.
        
        Affluenza is uttterly and totally committed to its own, and has oathed and oathed again and again that Affluenza shall not be shared with the common man.
        
        greywarshark 29.1.1.1.1.1
        
        31 May 2016 at 12:11 pm
        
        Observer: Toke
        When I saw your pseudo I thought you would have come up with something – er – different.
  - Ad 29.1.2
    
    28 May 2016 at 5:37 pm
    
    Key’s tactic is going to backfire big time.
    Any voter will see he is no longer trying for a solution.
    He’s just setting the scene for a wholesale clean out of Auckland Council.
    
    The alternative scenario for Key – wiping the 2016 election in Auckland – would ignite an almighty anti-National storm that would play and play right through to November 2017, and then again into election year.
    A no-win framing for Key. Boo hoo.
    - Unicus 29.1.2.1
      
      28 May 2016 at 5:54 pm
      
      This is the execrable one’s springbok tour – he and the National Party have plumbed these depraved depths before of course – 1951 – 1981 .
      
      Creating social turmoil for a hoped for political advantage is stock in trade for these despots.
      
      Bring it on I say – if there is to be blood in the streets let’s make sure it’s theirs.
  - greywarshark 29.1.3
    
    29 May 2016 at 9:53 am
    
    Sabine
    I think that the answer to your question as to Nzs imagination, comes in another comment you made where you said that NZs laid back attitude seemed attractive some years ago. I think you may have put your finger on a vital flaw, that attitude turned into inertia, and from there unwillingness to be active partners in democracy and contracted that role out to government itself and also contracted out the oversight in a neo lib way.
infused 30

28 May 2016 at 5:32 pm

“free the land and build more houses”

national do that..

“fuck national and john key”

gg
- ropata 30.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 10:14 pm
  
  they have talked a lot, that’s for sure. but there are still hundreds of kiwis sleeping in cars this winter.
  - leftie 30.1.1
    
    29 May 2016 at 1:45 pm
    
    But can those people still vote? Having a residential address is a requirement for voting eligibility is it not?
millsy 31

28 May 2016 at 7:08 pm

So who is going to force people to build all these houses that everyone wants built when this magic line of the city limit is rubbed out by Key himself?
- Jack Ramaka 31.1
  
  28 May 2016 at 7:35 pm
  
  Unfortunately there are not the companies in NZ with the financial backing and horsepower to build large numbers of houses, we have systemically destroyed the NZ building industry by abolishing the Apprenticeship Schemes and introducing shoddy Building Codes because the industry wanted to make more profit?
- ropata 31.2
  
  28 May 2016 at 10:17 pm
  
  the urban limits are not the problem, that is just a gnat PR line used to bash the Council. the problem is lack of tradies, and the existing ones are too busy constructing flash houses for wealthy immigrants. it’s a crisis entirely manufactured by central government policy
Jack Ramaka 32

28 May 2016 at 7:32 pm

Council management have got the Council in debt up to their eyeballs, god knows how as they haven’t done anything, now we have the Neoliberal Goff arriving on the scene to sell off Regional Assets, sh*t Council and sh*t Government for the past 40 years?
dave 33

28 May 2016 at 7:39 pm

free the land up yeah good one there is a major problem land can only be freed up when the supporting infrastructure meets subdivision so when that asshole smith sets a special housing area 10 km away from the last upgraded infrastructure that has the capacity for the next block he creates a major problem blocks in the past have only been released as we built in the capacity in the infrastructure sewerage pipes town water supply roading capacity ie you have to get the shit to the treatment plant what the real row between the council and this incompetent government is about who pays for kms of pipes pumping stations to reach one of smiths housing fuck ups in the middle of nowhere km from the last upgraded block and the costs are in the 100s of millions this key government is making a right mess.
Repateet 34

28 May 2016 at 7:55 pm

I see in reference to a Related item, “Hosking wants Auckland Council deposed.”

Hosking knows what is best for Auckland (actually the whole world) but he is too gutless to stand for mayor. He has the answers but wants to sermonise, pontificate and rave for the sidelines. Maybe he thinks the pay is not high enough.

This is my public challenge to Mike Hosking to stand for the Auckland Mayoralty. He should put his money and giant ego where his big mouth is.

Or is he hoping Key will simply go autocratic despot and put him in charge?
Jack Ramaka 35

28 May 2016 at 10:04 pm

Hoskings is a paid National Party shrill, on the taxpayer funded TV Network.

He is given his lines every night before he fronts the NZ public, we should have Dear Leader reading the news every night.

Why can’t they just give us the facts rather than spinning us B/S, which most of us know is B/S
OneTrack 36

29 May 2016 at 10:14 am

“The government must do something”.

Now it is doing something.
- leftie 36.1
  
  29 May 2016 at 1:49 pm
  
  What is the government doing Onetrack?
  - You_Fool 36.1.1
    
    30 May 2016 at 9:16 am
    
    Throwing it’s weight around, take no responsibility for any of it’s own actions and jsut start blaming someone else; just like a bully would
Observer Toke 37

31 May 2016 at 11:43 am

.
. No new housing

. While the hopeless National Tories speak and shout about what they are going to do, nothing is getting done.

Perhaps the Standard non-tories could take a case to the High Court indicting National Party for forcing unrepayable debt on the poorest of the poor.

The case would be built around the evil intention of the entire Tory Caucus. For each of them has delighted in what they are doing to desperate people.

Perhaps too, a Pro Bono Lawyer would take the case on our behalf.
Neil 38

31 May 2016 at 7:21 pm

Christchurch was first, Is Auckland second? certainly looks like at a tilt to a dictatorship

Links to post

Auckland’s housing crisis is just like Christchurch’s except … « The Standard: posted on 29 May 2016 at 8:21 am

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Bowalley Road

4 days ago
Open letter to the Minister of Dwindling Finances

Dear Nicola Willis, thank you for letting us know in so many words that the swingeing austerity hasn't worked.By in so many words I mean the bit where you said, Here is a sea of red ink in which we are drowning after twelve months of savage cost cutting and ...

More Than A FeildingBy David Slack

4 days ago
Open Government: The joke ends

The Open Government Partnership is a multilateral organisation committed to advancing open government. Countries which join are supposed to co-create regular action plans with civil society, committing to making verifiable improvements in transparency, accountability, participation, or technology and innovation for the above. And they're held to account through an Independent ...

No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant

4 days ago
An unusual sort of press conference

Today I tuned into something strange: a press conference that didn’t make my stomach churn or the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. Which was strange, because it was about the torture of children. It was the announcement by Erica Stanford — on her own, unusually ...

Sapphi’s SubstackBy Sapphi

4 days ago
This substack has talked about this government’s seeming corruption & pro-corporate issues...

This is a must watch, and puts on brilliant and practical display the implications and mechanics of fast-track law corruption and weakness.CLICK HERE: LINK TO WATCH VIDEO Our news media as it is set up is simply not equipped to deal with the brazen disinformation and corruption under this right wing ...

Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tūī

4 days ago
NZCTU: Minister needs to listen to the evidence on engineered stone ban

NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi Acting Secretary Erin Polaczuk is welcoming the announcement from Minister of Workplace Relations and Safety Brooke van Velden that she is opening consultation on engineered stone and is calling on her to listen to the evidence and implement a total ban of the product. “We need ...

NZCTUBy Stella Whitfield

4 days ago
Wednesday 18 December

The Government has announced a 1.5% increase in the minimum wage from 1 April 2025, well below forecast inflation of 2.5%. Unions have reacted strongly and denounced it as a real terms cut. PSA and the CTU are opposing a new round of staff cuts at WorkSafe, which they say ...

NZCTUBy Jack McDonald

4 days ago
Can the government change its mind on the ferries?

The decision to unilaterally repudiate the contract for new Cook Strait ferries is beginning to look like one of the stupidest decisions a New Zealand government ever made. While cancelling the ferries and their associated port infrastructure may have made this year's books look good, it means higher costs later, ...

No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant

4 days ago
Notes from Afar: Will Luxon Attend Waitangi Day? And Opposition Calls Out Nicola Willis for “C...

Hi there! I’ve been overseas recently, looking after a situation with a family member. So apologies if there any less than focused posts! Vanuatu has just had a significant 7.3 earthquake. Two MFAT staff are unaccounted for with local fatalities.It’s always sad to hear of such things happening.I think of ...

Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tūī

4 days ago
Member’s morning

Today is a special member's morning, scheduled to make up for the government's theft of member's days throughout the year. First up was the first reading of Greg Fleming's Crimes (Increased Penalties for Slavery Offences) Amendment Bill, which was passed unanimously. Currently the House is debating the third reading of ...

No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant

4 days ago
Going Backwards

We're going backwardsIgnoring the realitiesGoing backwardsAre you counting all the casualties?We are not there yetWhere we need to beWe are still in debtTo our insanitiesSongwriter: Martin Gore Read more ...

Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel

5 days ago
Blaming Treasury & Labour, Willis looks for even more Austerity

Willis blamed Treasury for changing its productivity assumptions and Labour’s spending increases since Covid for the worsening Budget outlook. Photo: Getty ImagesMōrena. Long stories short, the six things that matter in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, December 18 in The Kākā’s Dawn Chorus podcast above ...

The KakaBy Bernard Hickey

5 days ago
December-24 AT Board Meeting

Today the Auckland Transport board meet for the last time this year. For those interested (and with time to spare), you can follow along via this MS Teams link from 10am. I’ve taken a quick look through the agenda items to see what I think the most interesting aspects are. ...

Greater AucklandBy Matt L

5 days ago
The Making of a Mental Health Rockstar

Hi,If you’re a New Zealander — you know who Mike King is. He is the face of New Zealand’s battle against mental health problems. He can be loud and brash. He raises, and is entrusted with, a lot of cash. Last year his “I Am Hope” charity reported a revenue ...

David FarrierBy David Farrier

5 days ago
It could have been worse

Probably about the only consolation available from yesterday’s unveiling of the Half-Yearly Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU) is that it could have been worse. Though Finance Minister Nicola Willis has tightened the screws on future government spending, she has resisted the calls from hard-line academics, fiscal purists and fiscal hawks ...

PolitikBy Richard Harman

5 days ago
The Deep Divisions of Local Government

The right have a stupid saying that is only occasionally true:When is democracy not democracy? When it hasn’t been voted on.While not true in regards to branches of government such as the judiciary, it’s a philosophy that probably should apply to recently-elected local government councillors. Nevertheless, this concept seemed to ...

Sapphi’s SubstackBy Sapphi

5 days ago
Willis’ austerity strategy just isn’t working

Long story short: the Government’s austerity policy has driven the economy into a deeper and longer recession that means it will have to borrow $20 billion more over the next four years than it expected just six months ago. Treasury’s latest forecasts show the National-ACT-NZ First Government’s fiscal strategy of ...

The KakaBy Bernard Hickey

5 days ago
Sabin 33 #7 – Are solar projects hurting farmers and rural communities?

On November 1, 2024 we announced the publication of 33 rebuttals based on the report "Rebutting 33 False Claims About Solar, Wind, and Electric Vehicles" written by Matthew Eisenson, Jacob Elkin, Andy Fitch, Matthew Ard, Kaya Sittinger & Samuel Lavine and published by the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia ...

Skeptical Science

5 days ago
Join us for a pop-up Hoon at 5pm on HYEFU

Come and join myself and CTU Chief Economist for a pop-up ‘Hoon’ webinar on the Government’s Half Yearly Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU) with paying subscribers to The Kākā for 30 minutes at 5 pm today.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream to watch our chat. Don’t worry if ...

The KakaBy Bernard Hickey

5 days ago
‘Ideas Worth Saving’: A Call for Papers

Some years ago, I found myself pondering the power of literature to endure. Or at least the power of some of it to endure, while the rest vanishes in mere decades: https://phuulishfellow.wordpress.com/2019/08/07/look-on-my-works-ye-mighty-and-despair-the-literary-future/. I have similarly had fun with the subject in some of my short stories, such as Another Alexandria ...

A Phuulish FellowBy strda221

5 days ago
Corrections is torturing prisoners again

In 1998, in the wake of the Paremoremo Prison riot, the Department of Corrections established the "Behaviour Management Regime". Prisoners were locked in their cells for 22 or 23 hours a day, with no fresh air, no exercise, no social contact, no entertainment, and in some cases no clothes and ...

No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant

5 days ago
HYEFU and BPS data shows New Zealand is way off track

New data released by the Treasury shows that the economic policies of this Government have made things worse in the year since they took office, said NZCTU Economist Craig Renney. “Our fiscal indicators are all heading in the wrong direction – with higher levels of debt, a higher deficit, and ...

NZCTUBy Jack McDonald

5 days ago
“Better economic management”

At the 2023 election, National basically ran on a platform of being better economic managers. So how'd that turn out for us? In just one year, they've fucked us for two full political terms: The government's books are set to remain deeply in the red for the near term ...

No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant

5 days ago
Shameless, clueless

AUSTERITYText within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedMy spreadsheet insists This pain leads straight to glory (File not found) Read more ...

More Than A FeildingBy David Slack

5 days ago
Minimum wage ‘increase’ is an effective cut

The NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi are saying that the Government should do the right thing and deliver minimum wage increases that don’t see workers fall further behind, in response to today’s announcement that the minimum wage will only be increased by 1.5%, well short of forecast inflation. “With inflation forecast ...

NZCTUBy Jack McDonald

5 days ago
Crazy ’bout a Sharp-dressed Man

Oh, I weptFor daysFilled my eyesWith silly tearsOh, yeaBut I don'tCare no moreI don't care ifMy eyes get soreSongwriters: Paul Rodgers / Paul Kossoff. Read more ...

Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel

5 days ago
How much should you worry about a collapse of the Atlantic conveyor belt?

This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Bob Henson In this aerial view, fingers of meltwater flow from the melting Isunnguata Sermia glacier descending from the Greenland Ice Sheet on July 11, 2024, near Kangerlussuaq, Greenland. According to the Programme for Monitoring of the Greenland Ice Sheet (PROMICE), the ...

Skeptical Science

5 days ago
8% ACT Party Creates One Ring To Rule Them All

In August, I wrote an article about David Seymour 1 with a video of his testimony, to warn that there were grave dangers to his Ministry of Regulation:David Seymour's Ministry of Slush Hides Far Greater RisksWhy Seymour's exorbitant waste of taxpayers' money could be the least of concernThe money for Seymour ...

Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tūī

6 days ago
When austerity worsens public debt & cuts GDP

Willis is expected to have to reveal the bitter fiscal fruits of her austerity strategy in the HYEFU later today. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/TheKakaMōrena. Long stories short, the six things that matter in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Tuesday, December 17 in The Kākā’s Dawn Chorus podcast ...

The KakaBy Bernard Hickey

6 days ago
Govt to double number of toll roads

On Friday the government announced it would double the number of toll roads in New Zealand as well as make a few other changes to how toll roads are used in the country. The real issue though is not that tolling is being used but the suggestion it will make ...

Greater AucklandBy Matt L

6 days ago
Luxon’s pre-emptive strike

The Prime Minister yesterday engaged in what looked like a pre-emptive strike designed to counter what is likely to be a series of depressing economic statistics expected before the end of the week. He opened his weekly post-Cabinet press conference with a recitation of the Government’s achievements. “It certainly has ...

PolitikBy Richard Harman

6 days ago
Gordon Campbell On The Coalition’s Empty Gestures, And Abortion Refusal As The New Slavery

This whooping cough story from south Auckland is a good example of the coalition government’s approach to social need – spend money on urging people to get vaccinated but only after you’ve cut the funding to where they could get vaccinated. This has been the case all year with public ...

WerewolfBy ScoopEditor

6 days ago
More public service contempt of parliament

Back in 2023 the New Zealand Council for Civil Liberties raised concerns about the inherent conflict of interest involved in public service agencies supporting parliamentary select committees. Our parliament is run on a shoestring, so depends on the public service for advice. But public service agencies work for Ministers, not ...

No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant

6 days ago
If There Is A God

And if there is a GodI know he likes to rockHe likes his loud guitarsHis spiders from MarsAnd if there is a GodI know he's watching meHe likes what he seesBut there's trouble on the breezeSongwriter: William Patrick Corgan Read more ...

Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel

6 days ago
A Lipstick Government

Here’s a quick round up of today’s political news:1. MORE FOOD BANKS, CHARITIES, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SHELTERS AND YOUTH SOCIAL SERVICES SET TO CLOSE OR SCALE BACK AROUND THE COUNTRY AS GOVT CUTS FUNDINGSome of Auckland's largest foodbanks are warning they may need to close or significantly reduce food parcels after ...

Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tūī

6 days ago
NZCTU open letter to Treasury on undue restrictions on restricted briefings

Iain Rennie, CNZMSecretary and Chief Executive to the TreasuryDear Secretary, Undue restrictions on restricted briefings This week, the Treasury barred representatives from four organisations, including the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions Te Kauae Kaimahi, from attending the restricted briefing for the Half-Year Economic and Fiscal Update. We had been ...

NZCTUBy Jack McDonald

6 days ago
Why you won’t hear me advocate for electric cars

This is a guest post by Tim Adriaansen, a community, climate, and accessibility advocate. I won’t shut up about climate breakdown, and whenever possible I try to shift the focus of a climate conversation towards solutions. But you’ll almost never hear me give more than a passing nod to ...

Greater AucklandBy Guest Post

6 days ago
Coalition forced to back down on tolling Pahiatua track

A grassroots backlash has forced a backdown from Brown, but he is still eyeing up plenty of tolls for other new roads. And the pressure is on Willis to ramp up the Government’s austerity strategy. Photo: Getty ImagesMōrena. Long stories short, the six things that matter in Aotearoa’s political economy ...

The KakaBy Bernard Hickey

7 days ago
Thank You

Hi all,I'm pretty overwhelmed by all your messages and emails today; thank you so very much.As much as my newsletter this morning was about money, and we all need to earn money, it was mostly about world domination if I'm honest. 😉I really hate what’s happening to our country, and ...

Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel

7 days ago
2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #50

A listing of 23 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, December 8, 2024 thru Sat, December 14, 2024. Listing by Category Like last week's summary this one contains the list of articles twice: based on categories and based on ...

Skeptical Science

7 days ago
Making Gravy

I started writing this morning about Hobson’s Pledge, examining the claims they and their supporters make, basically ripping into them. But I kept getting notifications coming through, and not good ones.Each time I looked up, there was another un-subscription message, and I felt a bit sicker at the thought of ...

Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel

1 week ago
Nothing here but the shadows

Once, long before there was Harry and Meghan and Dodi and all those episodes of The Crown, they came to spend some time with us, Charles and Diana. Was there anyone in the world more glamorous than the Princess of Wales?Dazzled as everyone was by their company, the leader of ...

More Than A FeildingBy David Slack

1 week ago
The United Right: the FSU’s Continued Efforts to Undermine Academia

The collective right have a problem.The entire foundation for their world view is antiscientific. Their preferred economic strategies have been disproven. Their whole neoliberal model faces accusations of corporate corruption and worsening inequality. Climate change not only definitely exists, its rapid progression demands an immediate and expensive response in order ...

Sapphi’s SubstackBy Sapphi

1 week ago
Showing the Americans how to do it

Just ten days ago, South Korea's president attempted a self-coup, declaring martial law and attempting to have opposition MPs murdered or arrested in an effort to seize unconstrained power. The attempt was rapidly defeated by the national assembly voting it down and the people flooding the streets to defend democracy. ...

No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant

1 week ago
2 Men, 1 Haircut

Hi,“What I love about New Zealanders is that sometimes you use these expressions that as Americans we have no idea what those things mean!"I am watching a 30-something year old American ramble on about how different New Zealanders are to Americans. It’s his podcast, and this man is doing a ...

David FarrierBy David Farrier

1 week ago
Chris Penk’s Hate Parade

What Chris Penk has granted holocaust-denier and equal-opportunity-bigot Candace Owens is not “freedom of speech”. It’s not even really freedom of movement, though that technically is the right she has been granted. What he has given her is permission to perform. Freedom of SpeechIn New Zealand, the right to freedom ...

Sapphi’s SubstackBy Sapphi

1 week ago
Tell me a story

All those tears on your cheeksJust like deja vu flow nowWhen grandmother speaksSo tell me a story (I'll tell you a story)Spell it out, I can't hear (What do you want to hear?)Why you wear black in the morning?Why there's smoke in the air? Songwriter: Greg Johnson.Mōrena all ☀️Something a ...

Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel

1 week ago
As Our Power Lessens: Accepted

2024 is now officially my best-ever year for short stories. My 1,850-word dark fantasy piece, As Our Power Lessens, has been accepted for the upcoming solstice edition of Eternal Haunted Summer (https://eternalhauntedsummer.com/), thereby making that six published short stories for the calendar year. As always, see the Bibliography page for ...

A Phuulish FellowBy strda221

1 week ago

National’s Greatest Misses 2023-4

National has only been in power for a year, but everywhere you look, its choices are taking New Zealand a long way backwards. In no particular order, here are the National Government's Top 50 Greatest Misses of its first year in power. ...

Labour Blog

2 days ago
Release: Minister’s plan for tertiary sector a backwards step

Returning to the model that was failing for most polytechnics and Institutes of Technology is not the answer. ...

Labour Blog

2 days ago
Release: National buries 1019 planned homes

It’s been revealed that National has cancelled 60 percent of its housing projects planned before mid-2025 amidst housing woes. ...

Labour Blog

2 days ago
Release: Rule-Czar bill a right-wing power grab

The Government is quietly undertaking consultation on the dangerous Regulatory Standards Bill over the Christmas period to avoid too much attention. ...

Labour Blog

2 days ago
Release: Why not both? Luxon shuns Waitangi celebrations

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is running away from problems of his own creation, with his decision not to go to Waitangi. ...

Labour Blog

3 days ago
Govt’s ‘free speech’ legislation stokes fear, not freedom

The Government’s planned changes to the freedom of speech obligations of universities is little more than a front for stoking the political fires of disinformation and fear, placing teachers and students in the crosshairs. ...

Greens

3 days ago
Release: Nicola Willis spirals country deeper into recession

The economy shrank 1% this quarter and New Zealand has tumbled into the depths of a recession of Nicola Willis’ making. ...

Labour Blog

3 days ago
Release: Hikes for company directors but not ordinary Kiwis

Working people are going backwards while company directors are being given huge pay hikes. ...

Labour Blog

4 days ago
ECE no place to cut corners

The Ministry of Regulation’s report into Early Childhood Education (ECE) in Aotearoa raises serious concerns about the possibility of lowering qualification requirements, undermining quality and risking worse outcomes for tamariki, whānau, and kaiako. ...

Greens

4 days ago
Release: Strengthening Justice Services for New Zealanders

A Bill to modernise the role of Justices of the Peace (JP), ensuring they remain active in their communities and connected with other JPs, has been put into the ballot. ...

Labour Blog

4 days ago
Release: Labour will continue fight against destructive projects

Labour will continue to fight unsustainable and destructive projects that are able to leap-frog environment protection under National’s Fast-track Approvals Bill. ...

Labour Blog

5 days ago
Green Government will revoke dodgy fast-track projects

The Green Party has warned that a Green Government will revoke the consents of companies who override environmental protections as part of Fast-Track legislation being passed today. ...

Greens

5 days ago
Government for the wealthy keeps pushing austerity

The Green Party says the Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update shows how the Government is failing to address the massive social and infrastructure deficits our country faces. ...

Greens

5 days ago
Release: Visa changes let migrant workers be paid less

The Government’s latest move to reduce the earnings of migrant workers will not only hurt migrants but it will drive down the wages of Kiwi workers. ...

Labour Blog

5 days ago
Release: Nightmare before Christmas for Nicola Willis

With more debt and a larger deficit, Nicola Willis’ reputation is in tatters after her failure to return the Government’s books to surplus. ...

Labour Blog

5 days ago
Warning to Fast-Track Applicants – ‘Exploit the Whenua, Face the Consequences’

Te Pāti Māori has this morning issued a stern warning to Fast-Track applicants with interests in mining, pledging to hold them accountable through retrospective liability and to immediately revoke Fast-Track consents under a future Te Pāti Māori government. This warning comes ahead of today’s third reading of the Fast-Track Approvals ...

Māori Party

5 days ago
Release: Govt cuts wages for lowest paid NZers… again

For the second year running, the government has effectively cut wages for the lowest paid workers in New Zealand. ...

Labour Blog

5 days ago
Govt’s miserly 1.5% minimum wage will take workers backwards

The Government’s announcement today of a 1.5 per cent increase to minimum wage is another blow for workers, with inflation projected to exceed the increase, meaning it’s a real terms pay reduction for many. ...

Greens

5 days ago
Release: Govt shirking responsibility for rate hikes

All the Government has achieved from its announcement today is to continue to push responsibility back on councils for its own lack of action to help bring down skyrocketing rates. ...

Labour Blog

6 days ago
Luxon’s ‘localism’ strikes again

The Government has used its final post-Cabinet press conference of the year to punch down on local government without offering any credible solutions to the issues our councils are facing. ...

Greens

6 days ago
Release: Govt breaks promise on EV chargers

The Government has failed to keep its promise to ‘super charge’ the EV network, delivering just 292 chargers - less than half of the 670 chargers needed to meet its target. ...

Labour Blog

6 days ago
Greens call for end to subsidies for Methanex

The Green Party is calling for the Government to stop subsidising the largest user of the country’s gas supplies, Methanex, following a report highlighting the multi-national’s disproportionate influence on energy prices in Aotearoa. ...

Greens

6 days ago
Govt child poverty targets allow for increase in poverty

The Green Party is appalled with the Government’s new child poverty targets that are based on a new ‘persistent poverty’ measure that could be met even with an increase in child poverty. ...

Greens

1 week ago
Release: Four weeks annual leave under threat

The Government’s attack on workers continues with news it is scrapping work on the Holidays Act. ...

Labour Blog

1 week ago
Govt’s emissions plan for measly 1% reduction

New independent analysis has revealed that the Government’s Emissions Reduction Plan (ERP) will reduce emissions by a measly 1 per cent by 2030, failing to set us up for the future and meeting upcoming targets. ...

Greens

1 week ago
Greens stand in solidarity with Whakaata Māori on sad day

The loss of 27 kaimahi at Whakaata Māori and the end of its daily news bulletin is a sad day for Māori media and another step backwards for Te Tiriti o Waitangi justice. ...

Greens

1 week ago
Sanctions regime to create more hardship for families

Yesterday the Government passed cruel legislation through first reading to establish a new beneficiary sanction regime that will ultimately mean more households cannot afford the basic essentials. ...

Greens

1 week ago
Govt gifts renters housing anxiety for Christmas

Today's passing of the Government's Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill–which allows landlords to end tenancies with no reason–ignores the voice of the people and leaves renters in limbo ahead of the festive season. ...

Greens

1 week ago
Release: National Party urged to support modern slavery legislation

Labour is urging the Prime Minister to walk the talk and support legislation combating modern slavery. ...

Labour Blog

1 week ago
Release: Labour has lost confidence in the Speaker

The Speaker of the New Zealand Parliament made an unprecedented decision on the government amendment to the Fast Track Approvals Bill last night. ...

Labour Blog

2 weeks ago
One year on, still no progress on new ferries

Today’s announcement from the Government on its plan for new ferries throws more uncertainty on the future of the country’s rail network. ...

Greens

2 weeks ago
Release: Nicola Willis’ smaller ferries will cost more

After wasting a year, Nicola Willis has delivered a worse deal for the Cook Strait ferries that will end up being more expensive and take longer to arrive. ...

Labour Blog

2 weeks ago
Bill to sanction unlawful occupation of Palestine

Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick has today launched a Member’s Bill to sanction Israel for its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, as the All Out For Gaza rally reaches Parliament. ...

Greens

2 weeks ago
Release: Labour fully supports greyhound racing ban

The Government has done the right thing in moving to ban greyhound racing. ...

Labour Blog

2 weeks ago
Greyhound racing industry ban marks new era for animal welfare

After years of advocacy, the Green Party is very happy to hear the Government has listened to our collective voices and announced the closure of the greyhound racing industry, by 1 August 2026. ...

Greens

2 weeks ago
Rangatahi voices must be centred in Government’s Relationship and Sexuality Education refresh

In response to a new report from ERO, the Government has acknowledged the urgent need for consistency across the curriculum for Relationship and Sexuality Education (RSE) in schools. ...

Greens

2 weeks ago
Govt introduces archaic anti-worker legislation

The Green Party is appalled at the Government introducing legislation that will make it easier to penalise workers fighting for better pay and conditions. ...

Greens

2 weeks ago
Winston Peters – Kinleith Mill Speech

Thank you for the invitation to speak with you tonight on behalf of the political party I belong to - which is New Zealand First. As we have heard before this evening the Kinleith Mill is proposing to reduce operations by focusing on pulp and discontinuing “lossmaking paper production”. They say that they are currently consulting on the plan to permanently shut ...

NZ First Press Release

2 weeks ago
Swarbrick calls on Auckland Mayor to end delay of revival of St James Theatre

Auckland Central MP, Chlöe Swarbrick, has written to Mayor Wayne Brown requesting he stop the unnecessary delays on St James Theatre’s restoration. ...

Greens

2 weeks ago
He Ara Anamata: Greens launch Emissions Reduction Plan

Today, the Green Party of Aotearoa proudly unveils its new Emissions Reduction Plan–He Ara Anamata–a blueprint reimagining our collective future. ...

Greens

2 weeks ago

Internationally-trained doctors jump at chance to boost health workforce

Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says Health New Zealand will move swiftly to support dozens of internationally-trained doctors already in New Zealand on their journey to employment here, after a tripling of sought-after examination places. “The Medical Council has delivered great news for hardworking overseas doctors who want to contribute ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

10 hours ago
PM appoints business leader to APEC Business Advisory Council

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has appointed Sarah Ottrey to the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC). “At my first APEC Summit in Lima, I experienced firsthand the role that ABAC plays in guaranteeing political leaders hear the voice of business,” Mr Luxon says. “New Zealand’s ABAC representatives are very well respected and ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

2 days ago
New intelligence oversight appointments

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced four appointments to New Zealand’s intelligence oversight functions. The Honourable Robert Dobson KC has been appointed Chief Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants, and the Honourable Brendan Brown KC has been appointed as a Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants. The appointments of Hon Robert Dobson and Hon ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

2 days ago
New housing developments able to progress more quickly

Improvements in the average time it takes to process survey and title applications means housing developments can progress more quickly, Minister for Land Information Chris Penk says. “The government is resolutely focused on improving the building and construction pipeline,” Mr Penk says. “Applications to issue titles and subdivide land are ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

2 days ago
Actions to speed up air travel delivering results

The Government’s measures to reduce airport wait times, and better transparency around flight disruptions is delivering encouraging early results for passengers ahead of the busy summer period, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Improving the efficiency of air travel is a priority for the Government to give passengers a smoother, more reliable ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

2 days ago
Ending contracted emergency housing in Rotorua

The Government today announced the intended closure of the Apollo Hotel as Contracted Emergency Housing (CEH) in Rotorua, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. This follows a 30 per cent reduction in the number of households in CEH in Rotorua since National came into Government. “Our focus is on ending CEH in the Whakarewarewa area starting ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

2 days ago
Vocational education and training decisions support return to regions

The Government will reshape vocational education and training to return decision making to regions and enable greater industry input into work-based learning Tertiary Education and Skills Minister, Penny Simmonds says. “The redesigned system will better meet the needs of learners, industry, and the economy. It includes re-establishing regional polytechnics that ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

2 days ago
Reducing the environmental impact of synthetic refrigerants

The Government is taking action to better manage synthetic refrigerants and reduce emissions caused by greenhouse gases found in heating and cooling products, Environment Minister Penny Simmonds says. “Regulations will be drafted to support a product stewardship scheme for synthetic refrigerants, Ms. Simmonds says. “Synthetic refrigerants are found in a ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

2 days ago
Ngāruawāhia section of Waikato Expressway back to 4 lanes for Christmas

People travelling on State Highway 1 north of Hamilton will be relieved that remedial works and safety improvements on the Ngāruawāhia section of the Waikato Expressway were finished today, with all lanes now open to traffic, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“I would like to acknowledge the patience of road users ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

2 days ago
Appointments to the ENZ board

Tertiary Education and Skills Minister, Penny Simmonds, has announced a new appointment to the board of Education New Zealand (ENZ). Dr Erik Lithander has been appointed as a new member of the ENZ board for a three-year term until 30 January 2028. “I would like to welcome Dr Erik Lithander to the ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

3 days ago
Government to celebrate Waitangi Day around NZ

The Government will have senior representatives at Waitangi Day events around the country, including at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds, but next year Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has chosen to take part in celebrations elsewhere. “It has always been my intention to celebrate Waitangi Day around the country with different ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

3 days ago
More gangs added to Gangs Act list

Two more criminal gangs will be subject to the raft of laws passed by the Coalition Government that give Police more powers to disrupt gang activity, and the intimidation they impose in our communities, Police Minister Mark Mitchell says. Following an Order passed by Cabinet, from 3 February 2025 the ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

3 days ago
Judicial appointment announced

Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Justice Christian Whata as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Whata’s appointment as a Judge of the Court of Appeal will take effect on 1 August 2025 and fill a vacancy created by the retirement of Hon Justice David Goddard on ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

3 days ago
GDP data highlights importance of growth

The latest economic figures highlight the importance of the steps the Government has taken to restore respect for taxpayers’ money and drive economic growth, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Data released today by Stats NZ shows Gross Domestic Product fell 1 per cent in the September quarter. “Treasury and most ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

3 days ago
Strengthening Free Speech in Universities

Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds and Associate Minister of Education David Seymour today announced legislation changes to strengthen freedom of speech obligations on universities. “Freedom of speech is fundamental to the concept of academic freedom and there is concern that universities seem to be taking a more risk-averse ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

3 days ago
Launch of Emergency Cellular Priority Service

Police Minister, Mark Mitchell, and Internal Affairs Minister, Brooke van Velden, today launched a further Public Safety Network cellular service that alongside last year’s Cellular Roaming roll-out, puts globally-leading cellular communications capability into the hands of our emergency responders. The Public Safety Network’s new Cellular Priority service means Police, Wellington ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

3 days ago
Minister reopens Mangamuka Gorge

State Highway 1 through the Mangamuka Gorge has officially reopened today, providing a critical link for Northlanders and offering much-needed relief ahead of the busy summer period, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“The Mangamuka Gorge is a vital route for Northland, carrying around 1,300 vehicles per day and connecting the Far ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

3 days ago
Funding confirmed for second Ashburton Bridge

The Government has welcomed decisions by the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) and Ashburton District Council confirming funding to boost resilience in the Canterbury region, with construction on a second Ashburton Bridge expected to begin in 2026, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Delivering a second Ashburton Bridge to improve resilience and ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

3 days ago
Government boosts support for avian influenza response

The Government is backing the response into high pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in Otago, Biosecurity Minister Andrew Hoggard says. “Cabinet has approved new funding of $20 million to enable MPI to meet unbudgeted ongoing expenses associated with the H7N6 response including rigorous scientific testing of samples at the enhanced PC3 ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

3 days ago
Levelling the playing field for media advertising

Legislation that will repeal all advertising restrictions for broadcasters on Sundays and public holidays has passed through first reading in Parliament today, Media Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “As a growing share of audiences get their news and entertainment from streaming services, these restrictions have become increasingly redundant. New Zealand on ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

4 days ago
Inspector-General of Defence appointed

Today the House agreed to Brendan Horsley being appointed Inspector-General of Defence, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Mr Horsley’s experience will be invaluable in overseeing the establishment of the new office and its support networks. “He is currently Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security, having held that role since June 2020. ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

4 days ago
Fire and Emergency New Zealand final levy rates confirmed

Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government has agreed to the final regulations for the levy on insurance contracts that will fund Fire and Emergency New Zealand from July 2026. “Earlier this year the Government agreed to a 2.2 percent increase to the rate of levy. Fire ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

4 days ago
More AML relief on the way for Kiwi businesses

The Government is delivering regulatory relief for New Zealand businesses through changes to the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act. “The Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Amendment Bill, which was introduced today, is the second Bill – the other being the Statutes Amendment Bill - that ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

4 days ago
Hawke’s Bay Expressway moving at pace

Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed further progress on the Hawke’s Bay Expressway Road of National Significance (RoNS), with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) Board approving funding for the detailed design of Stage 1, paving the way for main works construction to begin in late 2025.“The Government is moving at ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

4 days ago
Government seeks partnerships to plant trees on Crown-owned-land

The Government today released a request for information (RFI) to seeking interest in partnerships to plant trees on Crown-owned land with low farming and conservation value (excluding National Parks) Forestry Minister Todd McClay announced. “Planting trees on Crown-owned land will drive economic growth by creating more forestry jobs in our regions, providing more wood ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

4 days ago
Wide ranging legislation to make justice system more efficient

Court timeliness, access to justice, and improving the quality of existing regulation are the focus of a series of law changes introduced to Parliament today by Associate Minister of Justice Nicole McKee. The three Bills in the Regulatory Systems (Justice) Amendment Bill package each improve a different part of the ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

4 days ago
Diverse skills in community trust appointments

A total of 41 appointments and reappointments have been made to the 12 community trusts around New Zealand that serve their regions, Associate Finance Minister Shane Jones says. “These trusts, and the communities they serve from the Far North to the deep south, will benefit from the rich experience, knowledge, ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

4 days ago
Torture redress for survivors of the Lake Alice Unit

The Government has confirmed how it will provide redress to survivors who were tortured at the Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital Child and Adolescent Unit (the Lake Alice Unit). “The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care found that many of the 362 children who went through the Lake Alice Unit between 1972 and ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

4 days ago
A busy year in the House

It has been a busy, productive year in the House as the coalition Government works hard to get New Zealand back on track, Leader of the House Chris Bishop says. “This Government promised to rebuild the economy, restore law and order and reduce the cost of living. Our record this ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

4 days ago
Consultation opens on working with engineered stone

“Accelerated silicosis is an emerging occupational disease caused by unsafe work such as engineered stone benchtops. I am running a standalone consultation on engineered stone to understand what the industry is currently doing to manage the risks, and whether further regulatory intervention is needed,” says Workplace Relations and Safety Minister ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

4 days ago
Greater reporting on Treaty settlement commitments

Mehemea he pai mō te tangata, mahia – if it’s good for the people, get on with it. Enhanced reporting on the public sector’s delivery of Treaty settlement commitments will help improve outcomes for Māori and all New Zealanders, Māori Crown Relations Minister Tama Potaka says. Compiled together for the ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

4 days ago
New appointments to the Charities Registration Board

Mr Roger Holmes Miller and Ms Tarita Hutchinson have been appointed to the Charities Registration Board, Community and Voluntary Sector Minister Louise Upston says. “I would like to welcome the new members joining the Charities Registration Board. “The appointment of Ms Hutchinson and Mr Miller will strengthen the Board’s capacity ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

4 days ago
Building consent processing times improve

More building consent and code compliance applications are being processed within the statutory timeframe since the Government required councils to submit quarterly data, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “In the midst of a housing shortage we need to look at every step of the build process for efficiencies ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

4 days ago
Faster access to support through Innovation Fund

Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey is proud to announce the first three recipients of the Government’s $10 million Mental Health and Addiction Community Sector Innovation Fund which will enable more Kiwis faster access to mental health and addiction support. “This fund is part of the Government’s commitment to investing in ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

5 days ago
New Zealand to assist Vanuatu on earthquake response

New Zealand is providing Vanuatu assistance following yesterday's devastating earthquake, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. "Vanuatu is a member of our Pacific family and we are supporting it in this time of acute need," Mr Peters says. "Our thoughts are with the people of Vanuatu, and we will be ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

5 days ago
Government takes steps to reduce card fees for Kiwis

The Government welcomes the Commerce Commission’s plan to reduce card fees for Kiwis by an estimated $260 million a year, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says.“The Government is relentlessly focused on reducing the cost of living, so Kiwis can keep more of their hard-earned income and live a ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

5 days ago
Review recommends ECE regulation shakeup

Regulation Minister David Seymour has welcomed the Early Childhood Education (ECE) regulatory review report, the first major report from the Ministry for Regulation. The report makes 15 recommendations to modernise and simplify regulations across ECE so services can get on with what they do best – providing safe, high-quality care ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

5 days ago
Offshore Renewable Energy Bill passes first reading

The Government‘s Offshore Renewable Energy Bill to create a new regulatory regime that will enable firms to construct offshore wind generation has passed its first reading in Parliament, Energy Minister Simeon Brown says.“New Zealand currently does not have a regulatory regime for offshore renewable energy as the previous government failed ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

5 days ago
Local Government (Water Services) Bill passes first reading

Legislation to enable new water service delivery models that will drive critical investment in infrastructure has passed its first reading in Parliament, marking a significant step towards the delivery of Local Water Done Well, Local Government Minister Simeon Brown and Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly say.“Councils and voters ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

5 days ago
Gene Technology Bill passes first reading

New Zealand is one step closer to reaping the benefits of gene technology with the passing of the first reading of the Gene Technology Bill, Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins says. "This legislation will end New Zealand's near 30-year ban on gene technology outside the lab and is ...

BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz

5 days ago

Signs of the hīkoi: More than just ‘words on cardboard’

The placards seen at the Hīkoi mō Te Tiriti conveyed "huge kōrero with immediacy", expert says: "People know the power of the word." ...

Radio NZ – political

7 hours ago
A final Ode to .. King Luxon

Cosmic CatastropheThe year draws to a close.King Luxon has grown tired of the long eveningsListening to the dreary squabbling of his Triumvirate.He strolls up to the top floor of the PalaceTo consult with his Astronomer Royal.The Royal Telescope scans the skies,And King Luxon stares up into the heavensFrom the terrestrial ...

NewsroomBy Victor Billot

14 hours ago
A hater and an enthusiast review The Royal Free by Carl Shuker

Spinoff editor Mad Chapman and books editor Claire Mabey debate Carl Shuker’s new novel about… an editor. Claire: Hello Mad, you just finished The Royal Free – overall impressions? Mad: Hi Claire, I literally just put the book down and I would have to say my immediate impression is ...

The SpinoffBy Claire Mabey

16 hours ago
Survive to 25 (December, that is)

Christmas and its buildup are often lonely, hard and full of unreasonable expectations. Here’s how to make it to Jesus’s birthday and find the little bit of joy we all deserve. Have you found this year relentless? Has the latest Apple update “fucked up your life”? Have you lost two ...

The SpinoffBy Anna Rawhiti-Connell

16 hours ago
All I want for Christmas is modern day slavery legislation

Despite overwhelming public and corporate support, the government has stalled progress on a modern day slavery law. That puts us behind other countries – and makes Christmas a time of tragedy rather than joy, argues Shanti Mathias. Picture the scene on Christmas Day. Everyone replete with nice things to eat, ...

The SpinoffBy Shanti Mathias

16 hours ago
Israeli-American historian describes attacks on Gaza as ‘war of annihilation’

Asia Pacific Report “It looks like Hiroshima. It looks like Germany at the end of World War Two,” says an Israeli-American historian and professor of holocaust and genocide studies at Brown University about the horrifying reality of Gaza. Professor Omer Bartov, has described Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza as an ...

Evening ReportBy Asia Pacific Report

18 hours ago
NZ govt plans to make ‘heavy handed’ change to free speech rules for universities

The New Zealand government coalition is tweaking university regulations to curb what it says is an increasingly “risk-averse approach” to free speech. The proposed changes will set clear expectations on how universities should approach freedom of speech issues. Each university will then have to adopt a “freedom of speech statement” ...

Evening ReportBy Asia Pacific Report

18 hours ago
Caitlin Johnstone: Where does the aggression really begin?

Report by Dr David Robie – Café Pacific. – COMMENTARY: By Caitlin Johnstone New York prosecutors have charged Luigi Mangione with “murder as an act of terrorism” in his alleged shooting of health insurance CEO Brian Thompson earlier this month. This news comes out at the same time as ...

Evening ReportBy David Robie

21 hours ago
OECD Report Highlights That More Is Needed

This report reflects that gap in our dealings overseas, and it shows that legislators, the public sector and businesses need to walk the talk. ...

Scoop politics

1 day ago
Government quietly scraps waste minimisation policies

The government has quietly cancelled plans to improve recycling and roll out a kerbside food scraps composting scheme. ...

Radio NZ – political

1 day ago
MEAA welcomes News MAP funding ‘leg up’ for Australian journalism

Pacific Media Watch The union for Australian journalists has welcomed the delivery by the federal government of more than $150 million to support the sustainability of public interest journalism over the next four years. Combined with the announcement of the revamped News Bargaining Initiative, this could result in up to ...

Evening ReportBy Asia Pacific Report

1 day ago
Transmission Gully partnership breakdown will not hurt future public-private partnerships, Infrastru...

The roads partnership unravelled under a confidential settlement this week, meaning NZTA will now finish off what it had said was incomplete work. ...

Radio NZ – political

2 days ago
Funding cuts to charity particularly felt over Christmas period

The number of people seeking help from Lifeline is expected to increase by 10 to 20 percent over Christmas. ...

Radio NZ – political

2 days ago
Nelson Hospital conditions ‘unbearable’ – staff

One worker says the building is decrepit and falling down around them. ...

Radio NZ – political

2 days ago
Keeping the pirates at bay: Should the Australian ‘Blocking Order’ case prompt a discussion in N...

Piracy is a reality of modern life – but copyright law has struggled to play catch-up for as long as the entertainment industry has existed. As far back as 1988, the House of Lords criticised copyright law’s conflict with the reality of human behaviour in the context of burning cassette ...

NewsroomBy Tania Goatley and Oscar Zambuto

2 days ago
The Secret Diary of .. Luxon at Xmas

MONDAY“Merry Xmas, and praise the Lord,” said Sheriff Luxon, and smiled for the camera. There was a flash of smoke when the shutter pressed down on the magnesium powder. The sheriff had arranged for a photographer from the Dodge Gazette to attend a ceremony where he handed out food parcels to ...

NewsroomBy Steve Braunias

2 days ago
Stand by for cricket’s Smash Palace

It’s a little under two months since the White Ferns shocked the cricketing world, deservedly taking home the T20 World Cup. Since then the trophy has had a tour around the country, five of the squad have played in the WBBL in Australia while most others have returned to domestic ...

NewsroomBy Aiden McLaughlin

2 days ago
Early-onset dementia under the microscope

Comment: If we say the word ‘dementia’, many will picture an older person struggling to remember the names of their loved ones, maybe a grandparent living out their final years in an aged care facility. Dementia can also occur in people younger than 65, but it can take time before ...

NewsroomBy Shruti Sharma and Dr Brigid Ryan

2 days ago
‘We were as famous as Tom Cruise’: Craig Parker on 90s Shortland St fandom

As he makes a surprise return to Shortland Street, actor Craig Parker takes us through his life in television. Craig Parker has been a fixture on television in Aotearoa for nearly four decades. He had starring roles in iconic local series like Gloss, Mercy Peak and Diplomatic Immunity, featured in ...

The SpinoffBy My Life in TV

2 days ago
‘I prioritise the mission, not my health’: Adam McGrath’s perfect weekend playlist

The Ōtautahi musician shares the 10 tracks he loves to spin, including the folk classic that cured him of a ‘case of the give-ups’. When singer-songwriter Adam McGrath returns to Kumeu’s Auckland Folk Festival from January 24-27, he’s not planning on simply idling his way through – he wants the late ...

The SpinoffBy Weekend playlist

2 days ago
The rescue dog bringing joy to Christchurch retirement homes

Alex Casey spends an afternoon on the job with River, the rescue dog on a mission to spread joy to Ōtautahi rest homes. Almost everyone says it is never enough time. But River the rescue dog, a jet black huntaway border collie cross, has to keep a tight pace to ...

The SpinoffBy Alex Casey

2 days ago
Fiji pro-Palestine nativity scene exposes Gaza as ‘hell on earth’ at Christmas

Asia Pacific Report Fiji activists have recreated the nativity scene at a solidarity for Palestine gathering in Fiji’s capital Suva just days before Christmas. The Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre and Fijians for Palestine Solidarity Network recreated the scene at the FWCC compound — a baby Jesus figurine lies amidst the ...

Evening ReportBy Asia Pacific Report

2 days ago
Vanuatu quake: ‘Our shop was flattened like a deck of cards’

By 1News Pacific correspondent Barbara Dreaver and 1News reporters A number of Kiwis have been successfully evacuated from Vanuatu after a devastating earthquake shook the Pacific island nation earlier this week. The death toll was still unclear, though at least 14 people were killed according to an earlier statement from ...

Evening ReportBy Asia Pacific Report

2 days ago
How diplomats have broken the law in NZ – and what happened next

A handful of foreign diplomats have misbehaved during their time here - and not all of them have been brought to justice. ...

Radio NZ – political

2 days ago
Swim schools report sinking enrolments as downturn deepens

Being able to swim is often considered a life skill, but tough economic times are forcing many families to pull their children out of lessons. ...

Radio NZ – political

2 days ago
‘There will be deaths because of this’ – Warning over Health NZ IT cuts

A West Coast IT worker is warning patients will die as Health New Zealand aims to slash its data and digital staff. ...

Radio NZ – political

2 days ago
Polytech sales possible but unlikely when Te Pūkenga disestablished – minister

In a surprise move, the sale of polytechnics will be on the table when the national institute of technology Te Pūkenga is disestablished. ...

Radio NZ – political

2 days ago
Parliament’s final sitting day an insight into party factions

On Parliament's last day of the year, there was a rare glimpse of the factions within the major parties. ...

Radio NZ – political

2 days ago
Former Labour MP, North Shore mayor Ann Hartley dies

Former Labour MP and mayor of Auckland's North Shore City Ann Hartley has died. ...

Radio NZ – political

2 days ago
The closest thing Australian cartooning had to a prophet: the sometimes celebrated, sometimes contro...

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Richard Scully, Professor in Modern History, University of New England Bunker. Image courtesy of Michael Leunig, CC BY-NC-SA Michael Leunig – who died in the early hours of Thursday December 19, surrounded by “his children, loved ones, and sunflowers” – was the ...

Evening ReportBy The Conversation

2 days ago
Labour moves Speaker from the ‘nice’ to ‘naughty’ list

Last week's fights with the Speaker over the Fast Track schedule may have changed the tone in Parliament. ...

Radio NZ – political

2 days ago
Govt ends pilot programme for Māori and Pacific, sparking outrage

The Government announced the end of the programme that allowed Māori and Pacific people to acess bowel cancer screening at 50-years-old. ...

Radio NZ – political

2 days ago
Parliament fits an extra morning into final sitting day

The House - On Parliament's last day of the year, there was the rare occurrence of a personal (conscience) vote on selling booze over the Easter weekend. While it didn't have the numbers to pass, it was a chance to get a rare glimpse of the fact ...

Radio NZ – political

2 days ago
The Friday Poem: ‘Bejeweled log’ by Holly Fletcher

A new poem by Holly Fletcher. bejeweled log i was dreaming about wasps / wee darlings that followed me / ducking under objects / that i was fated to pickup / my fingers seeking / and meeting with tiny proboscis’s / but instead / i wake up / roll sideways ...

The SpinoffBy Holly Fletcher

2 days ago
Sunglasses don’t just look good – they’re good for you too. Here’s how to choose the right p...

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Flora Hui, Research Fellow, Centre for Eye Research Australia and Honorary Fellow, Department of Surgery (Ophthalmology), The University of Melbourne Versta/Shutterstock Australians are exposed to some of the highest levels of solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation in the world. While we ...

Evening ReportBy The Conversation

2 days ago
How does franchising work?

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Terry, Professor of Business Regulation, University of Sydney Michael von Aichberger/Shutterstock Even if you’ve no idea how the business model underpinning franchises works, there’s a good chance you’ve spent money at one. Franchising is essentially a strategy for cloning ...

Evening ReportBy The Conversation

2 days ago
The one episode of Shortland Street you need to watch this year

If something big is going to happen in Ferndale, it’s going to happen at Christmas. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. If there’s one episode of Shortland Street you should watch each year, it’s the annual Christmas cliffhanger. The final episode of ...

The SpinoffBy Tara Ward

2 days ago
As China expands its cyber espionage and sabotage operations, how will the Trump administration resp...

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By William A. Stoltz, Lecturer and expert Associate, National Security College, Australian National University US President-elect Donald Trump has named most of the members of his proposed cabinet. However, he’s yet to reveal key appointees to America’s powerful cyber warfare and intelligence institutions. ...

Evening ReportBy The Conversation

2 days ago
The Unity Books bestseller chart for 2024

Announcing the top 10 books of the the year at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington. AUCKLAND 1 Intermezzo by Sally Rooney (Faber & Faber, $37) The phenomenal Irish writer is the unsurprising chart topper for 2024 with her fourth novel that, much like her first ...

The SpinoffBy The Spinoff Review of Books

2 days ago
Government confirms plan to dismantle Te Pūkenga, re-establish polytechs

The government has confirmed its plan to break up Te Pūkenga / New Zealand Institute of Skills and Technology and re-establish independent polytechnics. ...

Radio NZ – political

2 days ago

Screw democracy – Auckland to get the Canterbury treatment

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Screw democracy – Auckland to get the Canterbury treatment

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