Smith out-does Tolley as most incompetent minister

Written By: - Date published: 2:22 pm, October 16th, 2009 - 16 comments
Categories: climate change - Tags:

nickfiredWhile we’re all aghast over Nick Smith’s shambolic handling of ACC and his ‘people are killing themselves for cash’ comments, let’s not forget he’s also making a total botch up of climate change policy too.

As Marty discovered, National’s ETS will cost us $73 billion in added debt by 2050 and it’s being rushed through at such a stupid pace that no-one knows the details. Even staunch National supporters like Federated Farmers are complaining about the appalling lack of good process and consultation, as this report from Newsroom’s, Marie McNicholas shows:

Frayed Tempers At Rushed ETS Hearings

The frenetic pace set for considering 300 public submissions on the Government’s changes to the emissions trading scheme is fraying tempers on Parliament’s finance and expenditure committee.
Labour ‘s former climate change minister David Parker stormed from a closed session of the committee this afternoon complaining angrily that the rushed process was an abuse of Parliament and MPs who understood the issue could not take part because of other commitments.
Green MP Jeanette Fitzsimons followed Mr Parker out and voiced similar frustrations to reporters as a group of officials waiting to attend the hearings listened in awkward silence.
The first two submitters confirmed they had come at unusually short notice and were unhappy about the haste.
Federated Farmers president Don Nicolson said he learned at 10 am he was to present his submission early this afternoon, while Council of Trade Unions secretary Peter Conway said he was notified by phone last night.
When the committee moved into open session 20 minutes late, after what is understood to have been a rocky session arguing over how many submitters would get to be heard on the Climate Change Response (Moderated Emissions Trading) Amendment Bill, Mr Conway got to speak for five minutes.
He noted it was hard to get through the submission in what was “a rush job”.
“The National Party in Opposition were extremely critical of the last government when after a year of submissions they brought through a lot of technical submissions at the last minute, and you’re really doing worse than that,” Mr Conway told MPs.
Mr Nicolson, who got 12 minutes with the committee, told reporters he was not happy the process had been rushed. “It’s just lucky that we got to know about it,” he said.
The committee had his submission in writing but he would have liked to have had an hour with the MPs to address details in the bill, such as the point of obligation for farm emissions.
The Government has tasked the committee with reporting the 97-page bill it introduced under urgency three weeks ago back to the House by November 15.
Submissions closed on Tuesday and the committee is scheduled to hear submissions into the night.
According to Ms Fitzsimons, 160 of the 300 submitters want to appear before the committee.
The committee would have to sit all hours of the day and night, and the short notice and long hours were not fair to MPs or submitters, she said.
Most bills spend six months before a committee, but the Government wants the changes passed into law before crucial international climate change talks in Copenhagen in December and so it can delay the January 1 entry date for the energy and industrial sectors under the existing legislation.
Climate Change Minister Nick Smith acknowledged that the committee had a tight timetable but said the Government was in a difficult position because it was fighting the January deadline in Labour’s ETS.
The original ETS legislation had gone through a “very extensive” process of submissions, and all the issues had been canvassed again during the special review of the ETS, he said.
Meanwhile, Dr Smith would not comment on the detail of parallel negotiations with the Maori Party over the bill.
The Maori Party provided the majority National needed to introduce the bill but has committed only to backing the legislation to the select committee.
However, Dr Smith said he was not concerned about having the numbers to pass the bill.
“I’m satisfied the relationship is in good heart and we are working through the issues that were raised in the agreement we have reached with the Maori Party,” he said.

16 comments on “Smith out-does Tolley as most incompetent minister ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. toad 1
    16 October 2009 at 2:30 pm

    Just love the caption, Eddie.

  2. BLiP 2
    16 October 2009 at 2:41 pm

    Suicide Nick and Chopper Tolley are without a doubt bumbling fools, but I would have put Calamity Kate Wilkinson down as the most incompetent.

    The Maori Party are certainly not very happy with their mates in National Ltd® – National Radio reports that the Party reckons the ETS is the biggest rip off of Maori wealth since the 19th Century land confisfactions. Seems a shame their focus on on the almighty dollar rather than te whenua but any opposition is welcome.

    No doubt Saturday’s New Zealand Fox News Herald will have “Democracy Under Attack” banner headlines tomorrow . . .

  3. toad 3
    16 October 2009 at 2:42 pm

    Even the blog that shall not be named rated him as the worst performing Minister back in August – by a very large margin:

    This is the sum of those who said Very Good or Good less the sum of those who said Poor or Very Poor. The change from May 2009 ago is shown in brackets

    1. Judith Collins +51% (+14%)
    2. Chris Finlayson +47% (-5%)
    3. John Key +43% (-14%)
    4. Tony Ryall +43% (-4%)
    5. Simon Power +31% (-10%)
    6. Bill English +31% (-13%)
    7. Gerry Brownlee +12% (+6%)
    8. Anne Tolley +3% (-10%)
    9. Nick Smith -15% (-7%)

    And that will be mainly NACToids voting.

    • Clarke 3.1
      16 October 2009 at 3:27 pm

      And just to state the blindingly obvious, The Blog That Shall Not Be Named is completely silent on the ETS debacle. Can you imagine him sitting there quietly if Labour had tried to pull the same stunt …

  4. Christopher Nimmo 4
    16 October 2009 at 3:01 pm

    Where does Paula Bennett figure in your ratings?

  5. mickysavage 5
    16 October 2009 at 3:56 pm

    “The original ETS legislation had gone through a “very extensive’ process of submissions, and all the issues had been canvassed again during the special review of the ETS, [Smith] said.”

    He did not say that at the time the ETS was enacted and did comp[lain about how that process was rushed (!) and flawed(!). He has really outdone himself this week and has done more to energise the opposition and sap the Nat’s support than anyone I know.

    I hope he keeps up the good work.

  6. James 6
    16 October 2009 at 4:30 pm

    Unforetunately Nick smith won’t be fired for another two years.

  7. Steve 7
    16 October 2009 at 5:13 pm

    Smith is one of the most useless MPs.
    He is to National what Tizard is to Labour.
    If there was a Minister of Nothing, he would take the folio.

  8. burt 8
    16 October 2009 at 8:04 pm

    When it comes to incompetent;

    Maryan Street;

    On June 26, 2008, ACC was apparently strong enough for Ms Street to announce that 400,000 casual and seasonal workers would get improved cover.

    On September 11, she had enough confidence in the company’s finances to announce a re-elected Labour government would cut the motor vehicle levy from $254 to $203.

    However National earn a pretty big thumbs down for being so incompetent that they didn’t prosecuting Street & Cullen under the Public Finance Act. Hell the PFA was only passed as a response to Labour being so dishonest about the state of the economy in an attempt to stay in govt in 1990.

    • Macro 8.1
      16 October 2009 at 8:22 pm

      And how burt does that signify incompetence??
      Of course you HAVE to believe the lies that Smith and his cohorts are peddling about “blow-out” etc – but that is only because he wants to fully fund as a precursor to privatisation.

    • burt 8.2
      16 October 2009 at 8:32 pm

      Macro

      I guess you are right, Street never believed that ACC levies could be cut, she was just saying that in defiance of the requirements of the PFA. You correctly point out that blatant dishonesty and incompetence are not the same thing.

    • Draco T Bastard 8.3
      17 October 2009 at 12:33 am

      burt, are you ever going to stop believing the lies and misdirections from National?

      ACC is in good shape. So are our finances due to Cullen. Although it looks like this won’t be the case much longer due to the incompetence of NACT.

    • burt 8.4
      17 October 2009 at 1:34 am

      Draco

      The failed policies of the 2K’s will take years to fully impact, we haven’t seen the worst of Labour’s legacy yet.

    • felix 8.5
      17 October 2009 at 8:16 am

      Why do the National/Act people scream and gurgle about plans to “cut the motor vehicle levy from $254 to $203” as if it would bring on armageddon?

      Don’t you believe in the power of tax cuts anymore?

      Did you ever?

      If we were planning to privatise IRD would you be so vehemently opposed to income tax cuts too?

  9. rod 9
    16 October 2009 at 8:10 pm

    It must be remembered that Nick is one of the original Brat Pack, so nothing is new!

Links to post