Simon Bridges – pants on fire

Written By: - Date published: 6:06 pm, July 16th, 2013 - 119 comments
Categories: Politics - Tags:

It looks like it’s not just workers’ rights, and health and safety that Simon Bridges has truth issues with…

Pants on Fire

119 comments on “Simon Bridges – pants on fire ”

  1. weka 1

    Is that real?

  2. rosy 2

    Love that it’s over Banks shoes. Nice name association there.

  3. Yes 3

    gosh all the skyline pollution – wonder how much petroluem was burned to print that poster and all the vehicles…good Simon Bridges has been honoured. Lets not forget the big head office renovation going on at the moment for the heavyweughts at the top of greenpeace.

    • weka 3.1

      What’s your point?

    • IrishBill 3.2

      That’s the best you can do? You’re barely literate, son.

      • Yes 3.2.1

        Greenpeace have no proof at all. that’s my point – I gather Simon bridges cant either – so what a waste of energy on a billboard.

        Bet you a dollar the Greens supported this!

        • IrishBill 3.2.1.1

          Simon bridges cant

          Cant indeed.

        • weka 3.2.1.2

          “Greenpeace have no proof at all.”

          That Bridges has been accused of misleading parliament over whether he met with oil industry bods?

          Or that he says we can clean up oil spills?

          Or the fact that we can’t?

          I think all three of those are pretty easy to prove. Am pretty sure Greenpeace believe that too and aren’t expecting a libel suit any time soon

          • Yes 3.2.1.2.1

            Lying lying lying…all these lying MP’s so how come we top anti corruption stakes. Greenpeace is only good for shooting themselves in the foot. Good to see on the news tonight USA about to be bigger than the Arabs on oil production. So much for peak oil. However people dying in china from pollution and getting cancer. Then the lefts want to tax fuel for Auckland roads and raise toll money.

            I remember this argument about how tv causes violence etc etc. P.S. There was no tv during world war one or the napoleanic wars…people just make stuff up and on here is some real shape shifters but I enjoy the debate.

            And before someone gives me a lecture on ww1 Its my pet subject so have some pretty dam good links between millions of death and sesame street if you are going to claim tv is the cause for violence. The was no tv.

            I digress…oil production has another 200 years to go and by that time we would of landed on mars.

            • weka 3.2.1.2.1.1

              *facepalm* So much stupid in one comment.

              Peak Oil is about peak production, and the relationship between oil and the economy (it’s not about how much oil is left in the ground). Show me some evidence that Hubbert was wrong (about the timing, as I assume even you understand the basics of physics involved in non-renewable resources).

              Corruption is cultural. The corruption we have in the current govt is culturally sanctioned corruption, as opposed to the corruption we look at in other countries which doesn’t fit our ideas about what is ok.

              Violence… am pretty sure the violence in WW1 was because countries with lots of soldiers were at war with each other. Citation needed for anyone ever saying that TV caused WW1.

              btw, I take it from your lack of response to my comment that you reCant your statement about Greenpeace having no proof.

              • wtl

                Re: the violence comment. I think Yes is saying that if someone suggests that TV leads to higher violence then ALL violence must be caused by TV. Therefore, if one can find an instance of violence that was not preceded by TV (e.g. WW1), then it would disprove the hypothesis.

                I know it makes absolutely no sense, but is consistent with other comments Yes has posted so far. Draw your own conclusions from what this says about his/her ability to think.

            • felix 3.2.1.2.1.2

              I had a blue one once. But the second wheel fell off and it never tasted so good.

              That’s giraffes for you though!

              Spectacles.

            • Arfamo 3.2.1.2.1.3

              Lying lying lying…all these lying MP’s so how come we top anti corruption stakes.

              Actually, we don’t:

              http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_in_New_Zealand

            • Paul 3.2.1.2.1.4

              Ignorance personified, yes.,..

            • McFlock 3.2.1.2.1.5

              just… wow

            • Draco T Bastard 3.2.1.2.1.6

              So much for peak oil.

              You really have NFI WTF you’re talking about do you? Peak Oil happened for conventional oil in 2005/6. That and the massive price jump for crude drove development of uncoventional oil. The problem with unconventional oil is a) that’s it’s EROEI is far less and b) that it peaks a hell of a lot faster. So, what’s really happening is that we’re bumping along the bumpy plateau of Peak Oil now, sooner or later, we’ll start going down the other side and demand still isn’t decreasing.

              NZ will be one of the first countries priced out of the oil market and that includes our own oil. That latter part really shows the shear delusion of the free-market – we apparently can’t afford our own resources, resources that we already own.

              oil production has another 200 years to go

              Nobody who knows anything about Peak Oil hasn’t said otherwise. What they said is that production won’t match demand.

              Then the lefts want to tax fuel for Auckland roads and raise toll money.

              Actually, that seems to be The Consensus-Building Group.

            • muzza 3.2.1.2.1.7

              Too much madness in your post to address, but the below requires more.

              digress…oil production has another 200 years to go and by that time we would of landed on mars.

              Do you actually believe that your family/offspring are going to be part of any *deep space* plans for colonization, I mean are you completely deluded, or have you been *promised* a seat on the starship enterprise?

              You write like someone who genuinely does not give a toss, but your style betrays your fear.

              If you seriously believe what you write, then I have a single question for you.

              – What do you hope to achieve, and what are your preferred outcomes for NZ, and humanity in general!

              Don’t hold back, I would like to understand where your bigger picture is heading!

              • Yes

                I want a country where politicians don’t be make rubbish up. That simple

                • tracey

                  No you don’t or you wouldn’t spend most of your time on here defending those found to be misleading the electorate.

            • Jackal 3.2.1.2.1.8

              Yes!

              I digress…oil production has another 200 years to go and by that time we would of landed on mars.

              Yes! Because Mars gets as close as only 54.6 million kilometres from Earth, we already know how to travel to the moon (363,104 kilometres), we will be able to terraform entire planets by shooting friggin laser beams at them and StarTrek is real…it’s REAL I tells ya!

              With such an unsurpassed intellect, have you ever thought about working for Simon Bridges yes?

          • Yes 3.2.1.2.2

            Neither greenpeace or bridges can prove each other wrong because hither know?

        • Outofbed 3.2.1.3

          You owe a dollar

        • Sable 3.2.1.4

          Actually there is some pretty compelling evidence that we are not equipped to deal with a major oil spill. Keys and co are well aware of this but greed is good, so there you have it.

          • s y d 3.2.1.4.1

            Compelling eveidence alright – walked on the beach last night – still polluted from Rena, plastic beads all up on the high tide line, keep getting oil spots on the surfboard after a few waves..can’t even clean that up nearly 2 years on…and this geezer is my ‘local’ MP….

    • tracey 3.3

      You’re right Yes, imagine though how awful it would be if Bridges had signed something for charity that he hadn’t painted. Now THAT would be heinous…

  4. AmaKiwi 4

    Nice work, Greens.

    We won’t get changes until we start publicly embarrassing dishonest MPs.

  5. Brilliant!!!

    Next – a billboard listing all of Key’s lies and broken promises.

    Only thing though… is there a billboard big enough?!

  6. infused 6

    Accused… lol.

  7. Sable 7

    Yes indeed Greenpeace NOT Greens. I just received their blurb in the mail and not ONE WORD about dismantling Keys spy network. Can’t say I’m much pleased with this given Norman’s renunciation of Keys actions.

  8. Sable 8

    Maybe the Greenpeace party? They could have my vote.

  9. Saarbo 9

    Awesome…this is the sort of hard arsed tactics needed to expose this National Party, the MSM aren’t doing their job of exposing the truth so you just have to find another way…MORE PLEASE!

  10. Santi 10

    Greenpeace is as credible as Grant Robertson denying a leadership coup. Nothing to see here.

  11. IrishBill 11

    Classic headline:

    “Simon Bridges denies his pants are on fire”

    http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/auckland/news/nbpol/1742280717-simon-bridges-denies-his-pants-are-on-fire

    • s y d 11.1

      sigh….that article contains another glib lie – he ain’t a boy from Tauranga, just a national party blow in from Te Atatu…they just keep rolling off the tongue

  12. vto 12

    .
    Bridges bullshit

    Bridges bullshit

    Bridges bullshit

    Bridges the bullshitter

  13. Lefty 13

    Great job Greenpeace.

    It does make me wonder though: whatever happened to the fine old tradition of political graffitti.

    It is truly a sad measure of our lack of political engagement when the only signs of dissent are in paid advertising.

    In countries where there is still a strong sense that things can be changed every available blank public space is filled with political messaging.

    Its probably been partly replaced by Facebooking but this alone is not enough, the message needs to be in the face of the enemy.

    • Rosie 13.1

      Agreed Lefty. There has been long absence of clever political art, satire and graffiti in this town. The creative and free expression that used to be around has just disappeared over the years, along with any fight we once had in us. It needs to be there as a counter to the insipid and framed messages that people derive from the MSM. It needs to be there to challenge people’s belief they have in the lies they are told and it needs to be there to be a direct challenge to those who tell those lies.

      Speaking of MSM framing, heres a classic pro govt headline from stuffed.

      http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/8928503/Pants-on-fire-attack-on-minister

      So, Simon Bridges has been “attacked”. Do they ever say anything about Bridge’s attacks on democracy and his attacks of workers? No they don’t. They are apologists for this govt.

      Come back street artists. There’s no better time than now.

  14. Santi 14

    Didn’t Greenpeace say it was an apolitical organisation?
    No surprise the Charities Commission revoked its tax-free status, since they are an arm of the Green Party.

    • tracey 14.1

      Actually they won at the Court of Appeal.
      http://www.charities.govt.nz/assets/docs/registration/judgments/GreenpeaceNZIncmediarelease.pdf

      Can you cite some sources for “they are the arm of the Green Party”. Is the Employers federation an arm of the National Party? Or the Round Table? Notice how quiet the BRT is when National is in government?

      Santi do you support Ministers lying or misleading the electorate?

      • Veutoviper 14.1.1

        Well said, Tracey.

        As an aside, the Business Roundtable is no more. In 2012 it merged with the NZ Institute into the “New Zealand Initiative”.

        • framu 14.1.1.1

          also – apolitical and charity are two completely different things

          you can be a charity with political leanings/affiliations

          you can be a lobby group that is apolitical

          can you see the difference santi?

  15. tracey 15

    When you’re leary
    Feeling pall
    When doubt is in your eyes
    I will lie to you all

    I’m on your side
    When polls get rough
    And truth just can’t be found
    Like a Bridge over polluted water
    I will lie me down
    Like a Bridge over polluted water
    I will lie me down

    When you’re down and out
    When you’re on the street
    When wages fall so hard
    I will lie to you

    I’ll make up a part
    When oil spills come
    And birds lie all around
    Like a Bridge over troubled water
    I will lie me down
    Like a Bridge over troubled water
    I will lie me down

    Drill on Corporate Oil,
    Drill on down
    Your time has come to scour
    All your profit is on the way

    See how they refine
    If you need a friend
    I’m lying right behind
    Like a Bridge over troubled water
    I will ease your way
    Like a Bridge over troubled water
    I will lie your way

  16. tracey 16

    “On a more serious note, he has denied any conspiracy and says he was not lobbied by anyone to change the law.”

    Note he doesn’t actually address the lie that the billboard raise, of him meeting with the oil industry.

    • Chris 16.1

      He is directly addressing it – he is accused of misleading parliament because he said he never meet with anyone from the oil industry to discuss the changes about protesting at sea. It then emerged he had met with Shell a couple of weeks before introducing those changes. His argument is that the meeting was not about those changes but about something else.

      If he can prove that that meeting did not discuss those changes there is no lie.

      Also, while it is likely that they did discuss it, it is also likely that nothing will come of the misleading parliament charge as the accusers will need to prove that he did discuss that with Shell and I can’t see how they will do that.

  17. Not a PS staffer 17

    Fomm the NZ Herald

    Bridges said he was “chuffed” about the billboard.

    “As a boy from Tauranga, I’ve always wanted my name up in lights in the big city. Now it’s happened and I managed to get Greenpeace to pay for it.”

    Another lie.
    Bridges has claimned to be a boy from Te Atatu and there was a billboard of him and Tau Henare for a public meeting about the “Local boy done well” story.

    Bridges is well done now

  18. tracey 18

    Chris, can we agree that it is highly unlikely he was not lobbied by anyone to change the law? I must say when Mr Key promised in 2008 to be transparent and to even answer questions he wasn’t asked (Paul Henry interview on Breakfast), I hoped we were seeing a turning point. We weren’t.

    “If he can prove that that meeting did not discuss those changes there is no lie.”

    And he hasn’t. He has denied the accusation which is different. Politicians denying accusations of lying or misleading the public is like a tour de france winner saying he is as appalled by other people taking drugs as everyone else but he is clean..

    As long as we, the public accept that if it is our “team’ doing the misleading, well, what can we do. As long as we see our government of preference about being on the winning or losing team, we are sunk.

    Family First says the decline in children being born into wedlock is a danger warning, I say accepting misleading, obsfucation and lie as “normal” behaviour in ALL our politicians we are sunk.

    • Chris 18.1

      I completely agree it is highly unlikely. The timing is all too convenient. I don’t agree with what he has done at all. My post was more to try and point out that the lie he is accused of was not that he met with petrol company representatives, he has already admitted that he did.

  19. tracey 19

    From wikipedia

    “Early life

    Simon Bridges was born in October 1976 in Auckland, the youngest of six children. His father, a Māori of Ngāti Maniapoto descent, was a Baptist Minister, and his mother, a NZ European from Waihi, was a primary school teacher. He is also related to former Labour Cabinet minister Koro Wētere.[1]

    Bridges grew up in Te Atatu, where he attended high school at Rutherford College. There, he was taught by future Labour Education Minister Chris Carter, and also became Head Boy of the college.[2][3] He went on to complete a BA in political science and history and an LLB (Hons) at the University of Auckland.
    Legal career

    Bridges began his legal career as a litigation lawyer at a major Auckland law firm, Kensington Swan.[2] He moved to Tauranga in 2001 to take up a position as a Crown prosecutor in the District and High Courts. During this time, he took leave to travel to the United Kingdom to study at the London School of Economics, and later to complete a postgraduate law degree at St Catherine’s College, Oxford; he also worked as an intern in the British House of Commons.[2] As a Crown prosecutor in Tauranga, Bridges mainly worked on jury trials.[4] Bridges ended his legal career in 2008, when he was nominated by the National Party to stand for election to the New Zealand Parliament.[5]
    Early political career

    Bridges became a member of the Young Nationals at the age of 16 and was elected Deputy New Zealand Chair in 1997. He was active in National’s West Auckland organisation as a member of Brian Neeson’s electorate team, whom he supported at the 2002 general election against a challenge by John Key for the National Party candidacy to contest the new seat of Helensville.[2] In the following years, he held several senior positions within the party, including sitting on the National Party rules committee and chairperson of the Tauranga National Party.[5]”

    • Veutoviper 19.1

      “…During this time, he took leave to travel to the United Kingdom to study at the London School of Economics …”

      LOL. I wonder whether he studied under Prof Robert Wade, Bill English’s new “bestie” as discussed in the Truth Makes Them Angry post here?

      I somehow doubt that they (Bridges/Wade) share the same views!

    • muzza 19.2

      One can see how the young agents life pans out, while receiving the obligatory rinse along the road.

      They are a familiar journey, one which inevitably leads back to home base, ready to take the order they were given, and having way cleared for them, to rule!

      Bridges actions betray NZ, that much is well established!

  20. Darien Fenton 20

    Brian Neeson. Pffffft! Says it all really.

  21. Steve Wrathall 21

    Being accused of telling porkies by Greenpeace is deep irony

  22. tsmithfield 22

    Nonsense and misinformation is being propagated about the nature of the ban on protesting. For instance, from the article:

    31 March (Easter Sunday): Bridges publicly announces an amendment to the Crown Minerals Bill to ban protests at sea.

    What utter nonsense. Protesting at sea isn’t banned. Greenpeace can still go and protest in probably 99.999% of the sea without restriction.

    • McFlock 22.1

      And the protests in the other 0.001%?

      Banned.
      Those protests would be at sea.
      So… well, you know the rest.

      • tsmithfield 22.1.1

        As I understand it, protests can take place outside of 500 metres from a drilling site. That seems sensible from a health and safety perspective alone, and is still close enough to be seen making a point.

        I can well imagine that if a protester got injured or killed on a drilling site, then the very same people bleating about the current ban would start bleating that the government hadn’t passed any law to stop them getting into harms way.

        • Winston Smith 22.1.1.1

          Oi! Don’t be bringing that kind of logic into this arguement.

          • McFlock 22.1.1.1.1

            Indeed. Idiot’s logic.

            If protesters are close enough to endanger safety of themselves or others, this is covered by maritime law, OSH, and the crimes act. No arbitrary “500m”. And the RICO-esque seasoning on the law is clearly aimed at prosecuting organisations when there is absolutely no evidence that the organisation incited or participated in the “offence”.

        • Te Reo Putake 22.1.1.2

          Quite right, TS. They’re allowed to protest as long as they don’t do so effectively. Very sensible.

          • tsmithfield 22.1.1.2.1

            The problem is that such protests have impeded organisations from engaging in lawful activities in the past. Seems strange to me that they should be complaining about the government limiting their right to act lawfully when they attempt to do the same to other organisations. Hypocrites much.

            • Colonial Viper 22.1.1.2.1.1

              Protests are a form of civil disobedience. Suck it up mate, that’s just the way it is.

        • Lloyd 22.1.1.3

          And the ship can go anywhere it likes. The 500 metres keeps shifting. In other words the entire ocean is out of bounds for protest.

      • Bob 22.1.2

        So we have an Alcohol ban in NZ because some local councils have liquor bans in public areas?
        Pull your head in.

        • Murray Olsen 22.1.2.1

          Even with all our earthquakes, local council areas move around a little less than ships at sea. Not a sailor, are you Bob?

    • felix 22.2

      I’m getting tired of all the “nonsense and misinformation” being propagated about it being illegal to take mind altering drugs in this country.

      People complain that they’re only affecting their own body and mind so what business is it of anyone else.

      What nonsense. Substances aren’t banned. People can probably still partake of 99.999% of all the consumable substances in the world without restriction.

      • tsmithfield 22.2.1

        Except your logic doesn’t follow. I was objecting to the claim that protests had been banned at sea, which is clearly not the gase.

        To follow logically, you would need to say:

        I am getting tired of all the “nonsense and misinformation” being propagated about consuming substances being banned in this country.

        Perhaps you would like to reword your argument starting at that position.

      • tracey 22.2.2

        Yes. People must only protest unlawful activity

  23. captain hook 23

    I haven’t seen so much grease on a billboard since the last close up of Elvis Presleys hair do.

    • Santi 23.1

      I believe it’s excellent propaganda for Bridges, who will easily win the seat (again).
      Keep at it Redpeace, sorry, Greenpeace.

  24. GREAT work Greenpeace!

    Well done.
    _____________________________________________________________________________

    Our #PantsOnFire billboard has caused quite a stir in Wellington .. but Simon Bridges MP has so far failed to clear his name in response to allegations that he mislead Parliament and New Zealand over his dealings with Shell regarding the controversial Crown Minerals Bill amendment and law changes around protest at sea … http://act.gp/18mj1DH

    And he says that we can deal with an oil spill. We can’t.

    He also said that he thought the photo was good and he was chuffed to have his own billboard in Wellington… http://goo.gl/ygdSw

    #AnadarkoAmendment
    ______________________________________________________________________________

    This is a form of ‘corrupt practice’ known as ‘State capture’ – where vested interests lobby for the legislation that serves their interests at the ‘policy’ stage, before the legislation is passed.

    In my considered opinion as an ‘anti-corruption’ campaigner – this is a form of ‘grand’ corruption which is endemic in corrupt, polluted tax haven – New Zealand (aka ‘the least corrupt country in the world’ ).

    (Check out the Regulatory Impact Statements / Reports and see who has been ‘consulted’? )

    Penny Bright
    ‘Anti-corruption /anti-privatisation’ campaigner

    2013 Auckland Mayoral candidate

  25. tsmithfield 25

    I really don’t understand all the whining and bleating about the law being changed to limit protest.

    Organisations such as Greenpeace display very little regard for the law when it comes to inhibiting the rights of others to engage in lawful activity. So why complain and bleat about it when the government acts to limit the lawful right of protest? Surely its just a case of them not liking it when the boot is on the other foot.

    Since these organisations often display little regard for the law anyway, then why not just ignore the 500 metre law and accept the consequences? All this whining and bleating doesn’t impress me at all. Or is it just that we have fairweather protestors here who will only protest when everything is in their favour?

    • richard 25.1

      I really don’t understand all the whining and bleating about the law being changed to limit protest.

      That is the whole point.
      – The law is being changed to limit protest.
      – The law is being changed to try to limit the effectiveness of protest.
      – The law is being changed to try to muzzle protest.
      – The law is being changed to try to limit peoples’ rights to defend the values they believe in.

      • tsmithfield 25.1.1

        Yet organisations such as Greenpeace are very happy to do the same in trying to limit the ability of other organisations to go about their lawful activities.

        You are making a lot of assumptions about why the government has changed the law in this respect.

        Perhaps the government is trying to ensure the rights of organisations to act lawfully are properly balanced, so that the rights of one doesn’t infringe on the rights of the other. Do you think?

  26. Yet organisations such as Greenpeace are very happy to do the same in trying to limit the ability of other organisations to go about their lawful activities.

    “Lawful” does not always make it right, TS. A bad law can have dire consequences for all of us – you included.

    • tsmithfield 26.1

      Absolutely. But the rights to protest are already balanced against the rights of others. For example, I couldn’t lawfully break into your house to protest against something. So, there isn’t anything particularly unusual about legislating to ensure that competing rights are balanced equitably.

      • MrSmith 26.1.1

        “I couldn’t lawfully break into your house to protest against something.”

        Good comparison TS Not.

        This law change is just another attack on people/organizations being able to organize a protest, but you know that TS.

      • “Breaking into my house”?!

        Not a good comparison at all, TS. (Unless my stereo is blaring at 3am in the morning and Noise Control is nowhere to be seen.)

        And really, when you’re refering to “the rights to protest are already balanced against the rights of others”, that’s code for neutering the ability of protesters to carry out effective protest.

  27. Viv K 27

    ‘I couldn’t break into your house’. Not a valid comparison. What if you were arrested for going within half a km of someone’s house. Being arrested for protesting in a neighbouring suburb.

    • tsmithfield 27.1

      So, should the line be drawn anywhere so far as protest against legal activities is concerned. If so, where?

      • Now that’s an excellent question, Ts.

        And to be honest with you, it’s not an easy one to answer…

        All, I can say is that it depends on the situation. Personally speaking, I doubt I’d be involved in any protest that involved violence that threatened peoples’ lives.

        • tsmithfield 27.1.1.1

          So, it seems we both agree the line should be drawn somewhere. The answer is therefore going to be a subjective one. So, a 500 metre limit isn’t necessarily wrong. As you say, it depends on the situation.

          There are other instances where boundaries are set for protests. For instance, when protestors are kept behind barriers when visiting VIPs visit and the like. So, it is not without precedent.

          • felix 27.1.1.1.1

            The onus is always on those who want to curtail freedom, not the other way around.

      • Making legal protest illegal needs to be justified. Whether the protest is against something that is legal or illegal, undertaken by individuals, companies or government is irrelevant. If there is no reasonable basis for changing the status of legal protest, then it shouldn’t be changed. Pretending that the target of the protest has something to do with it is at best misleading.

        • tsmithfield 27.1.2.1

          It seems that the 500 metre limit is a secondary offence that seems related to the tendency of some protesters to sabotage and interfere with legitimate activities. I don’t believe that sort of activity would qualify as legal protest, especially if it compromised safety.

          So, perhaps the protesters have brought the 500 metre limit on themselves due to past behaviour.

  28. Lloyd 28

    One could argue that the protests haven’t been effective enough so the stupid behaviour they are protesting about continues and sane people have to continue to protest. In this case its the stupid behaviour that has caused the draconian law to be introduced.

  29. Foreign Waka 29

    Sad to watch a country being internationally admired for its will to stand up against terrorists that blew up the Rainbow Warrior, introducing anti nuclear legislation, having designated National Parks that are the envy of so many, being a bacon of sanity – albeit sometimes hard fought for. And then, within a relative short time, such reputation is not just diminished but by will of individual interest a country is fast moving towards something quite unimaginable – spying on people, corporate sponsorship of gaming halls, legal synthetic garbage, collaboration with international corporations to amend civil liberty laws etc.. sad, really sad.

  30. tsmithfield 30

    I guess that a justification for protest is that it wins the hearts and minds of the public. It seems that the more extreme versions of protest haven’t achieved that objective.

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    The Detail this morning highlights the police's asset forfeiture case against convicted business criminal Ron Salter, who stands to have his business confiscated for systemic violations of health and safety law. Business are crying foul - but not for the reason you'd think. Instead of opposing the post-conviction punishment and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 hours ago
  • Misremembering Justinian’s Taxes.
    Tax Lawyer Barbara Edmonds vs Emperor Justinian I - Nolo Contendere: False historical explanations of pivotal events are very far from being inconsequential.WHEN BARBARA EDMONDS made reference to the Roman Empire, my ears pricked up. It is, lamentably, very rare to hear a politician admit to any kind of familiarity ...
    4 hours ago
  • Bryce Edwards: Scoring 4.6 out of 10, the new Government is struggling in the polls
    It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support for the various parties in ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    5 hours ago
  • Bishop scores headlines with crackdown on unwelcome tenants – but Peters scores, too, as tub-thump...
    Buzz from the Beehive Housing Minister Chris Bishop delivered news – packed with the ingredients to enflame political passions – worthy of supplanting Winston Peters in headline writers’ priorities. He popped up at the post-Cabinet press conference to promise a crackdown on unruly and antisocial state housing tenants. His ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 hours ago
  • Will it make the boat go faster?
    Ele Ludemann writes – The Reserve Bank is advertising for a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion advisor. The Bank has one mandate – to keep inflation between one and three percent. It has failed in that and is only slowly getting inflation back down to the upper limit. Will it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    9 hours ago
  • Bryce Edwards: Is Simon Bridges’ NZTA appointment a conflict of interest?
    Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi The fact that a ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    9 hours ago
  • Is Simon Bridges’ NZTA appointment a conflict of interest?
    Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    9 hours ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' at 10:10am on Tuesday, March 19
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st Century The SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims Stuff Steve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    9 hours ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things on Tuesday, March 19
    It’s a home - but Kāinga Ora tenants accused of “abusing the privilege” may lose it. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Government announced a crackdown on Kāinga Ora tenants who were unruly and/or behind on their rent, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop saying a place in a state ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    11 hours ago
  • New Life for Light Rail
    This is a guest post by Connor Sharp of Surface Light Rail  Light rail in Auckland: A way forward sooner than you think With the coup de grâce of Auckland Light Rail (ALR) earlier this year, and the shift of the government’s priorities to roads, roads, and more roads, it ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    11 hours ago
  • Why Are Bosses Nearly All Buffoons?
    Note: As a paid-up Webworm member, I’ve recorded this Webworm as a mini-podcast for you as well. Some of you said you liked this option - so I aim to provide it when I get a chance to record! Read more ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    14 hours ago
  • Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6.06 pm on March 18
    TL;DR: In my ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Monday, March 18:IKEA is accused of planting big forests in New Zealand to green-wash; REDD-MonitorA City for People takes a well-deserved victory lap over Wellington’s pro-YIMBY District Plan votes; A City for PeopleSteven Anastasiou takes a close look at the sticky ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Peters holds his ground on co-governance, but Willis wriggles on those tax cuts and SNA suspension l...
    Buzz from the Beehive Here’s hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and – perhaps – some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 day ago
  • Labour’s final report card
    David Farrar writes –  We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how  went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promise The result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • “Drunk Uncle at a Wedding”
    I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago
  • Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • Gordon Campbell on Dune 2, and images of Islam
    Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
    1 day ago
  • New Rail Operations Centre Promises Better Train Services
    Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
    1 day ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things at 6.36am on Monday, March 18
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    2 days ago
  • The Kaka’s diary for the week to March 25 and beyond
    TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Bitter and angry; Winston First
    New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    2 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    2 days ago
  • Out of Touch.
    “I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • The bewildering world of Chris Luxon – Guns for all, not no lunch for kids
    .“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
    Frankly SpeakingBy Frank Macskasy
    3 days ago
  • Expert Opinion: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.
    “It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
    3 days ago
  • Manufacturing The Truth.
    Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology â€“ the Internet –  is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
    3 days ago
  • A Powerful Sensation of DĂŠjĂ  Vu.
    Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
    3 days ago
  • Can you guess where world attention is focussed (according to Greenpeace)? It’s focussed on an EPA...
    Bob Edlin writes –  And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • Further integrity problems for the Greens in suspending MP Darleen Tana
    Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Jacqui Van Der Kaay: Greens’ transparency missing in action
    For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    3 days ago
  • Bernard’s Dawn Chorus with six newsey things at 6:46am for Saturday, March 16
    TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ Herald Thomas Coughlan Simeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • How Did FTX Crash?
    What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago
  • Elections in Russia and Ukraine
    Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s six stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15
    TL;DR: Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it:  We want our country to be a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • National’s clean car tax advances
    The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Government funding bailouts
    Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Two offenders, different treatments.
    See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    4 days ago
  • Treaty references omitted
    Ele Ludemann writes  – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • The Ghahraman Conflict
    What was that judge thinking? Peter Williams writes –  That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 15
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop: Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • The day Wellington up-zoned its future
    Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 15-March-2024
    It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    4 days ago
  • That Word.
    Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to March 15
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Labour’s policy gap
    It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #11 2024
    Open access notables A Glimpse into the Future: The 2023 Ocean Temperature and Sea Ice Extremes in the Context of Longer-Term Climate Change, Kuhlbrodt et al., Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society: In the year 2023, we have seen extraordinary extrema in high sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Atlantic and in ...
    5 days ago
  • Melissa remains mute on media matters but has something to say (at a sporting event) about economic ...
     Buzz from the Beehive   The text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary.  It can be quickly analysed ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • The return of Muldoon
    For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Will the rental tax cut improve life for renters or landlords?
    Bryce Edwards writes –  Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: What Saudi Arabia’s rapid changes mean for New Zealand
    Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    5 days ago
  • Racism’s double standards
    Questions need to be asked on both sides of the world Peter Williams writes –   The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • It’s not a tax break
    Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • The Plastic Pig Collective and Chris' Imaginary Friends.
    I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Who is responsible for young offenders?
    Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on National’s fantasy trip to La La Landlord Land
    How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
    5 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 14
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop: The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • No, Prime Minister, rents don’t rise or fall with landlords’ costs
    TL;DR: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Cartoons: ‘At least I didn’t make things awkward’
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
    5 days ago
  • Solving traffic congestion with Richard Prebble
    The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    5 days ago
  • I Think I'm Done Flying Boeing
    Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • Invoking Aristotle: Of Rings of Power, Stones, and Ships
    The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
    6 days ago
  • Van Velden brings free-market approach to changing labour laws – but her colleagues stick to distr...
    Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Why Newshub failed
    Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Māori Party on the warpath against landlords and seabed miners – let’s see if mystical creature...
    Bob Edlin writes  –  The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they  follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

  • Government moves to quickly ratify the NZ-EU FTA
    "The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 hours ago
  • Positive progress for social worker workforce
    New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 hours ago
  • Minister confirms reduced RUC rate for PHEVs
    Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    9 hours ago
  • Trade access to overseas markets creates jobs
    Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand.  Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    10 hours ago
  • NZ and Chinese Foreign Ministers hold official talks
    Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    23 hours ago
  • Kāinga Ora instructed to end Sustaining Tenancies
    Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber: Growth is the answer
    Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Singapore rounds out regional trip
    Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships.      “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Minister van Velden represents New Zealand at International Democracy Summit
    Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Insurance Council of NZ Speech, 7 March 2024, Auckland
    ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland  Acknowledgements and opening  Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho.  Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau  My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Five-year anniversary of Christchurch terror attacks
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