Superannuation policy becomes political

Written By: - Date published: 9:18 am, May 29th, 2023 - 68 comments
Categories: benefits, Carmel Sepuloni, Christopher Luxon, Economy, kiwisaver, labour, national, superannuation - Tags:

This week has been a week of major economic news.

It broke on Tuesday with the CTU announcing that there was a rather large hole in National’s tax cut calculations.  Actually it was $1.5 billion which is not to be sneezed at.

From the CTU website:

The cost of the National Party’s promised changes to tax thresholds has blown out by $1.5 billion – to a total of $8.2 billion over four years, according to fresh analysis by the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions.

The CTU’s analysis incorporates new forecasts from Budget 2023 and has been independently verified by tax consultant Terry Baucher, director of Baucher Consulting.

“Voters deserve to know now how National intends to fund these even more expensive tax cuts, which favour those on higher incomes and landlords,” said CTU economist Craig Renney.

“National said its tax bracket adjustments would cost $1.66 billion annually when announced as policy in March 2022. This represents $6.64 billion over four years. The revised cost is now $8.2 billion – a $1.5 billion blowout.

“On top of this, National has also committed to another $890 million annually in tax breaks for landlords.”

National’s costing appears to be based on 2021 wage data. The new analysis, based on Treasury’s Budget 2023 wage growth data, conservatively calculates the cost of the bracket adjustments at $1.94b in 2024/25, rising to $2.14b in 2027/2028.

“The question is, how will this be funded? The scale of these tax cuts is around the same cost as cutting the entire annual Police budget. We’re not talking about spare change that can be made up by cutting a few consultants.

“National needs to show how it can fund these tax cuts and also meet rising cost pressures in health, education, climate change and superannuation – not to mention funding a cyclone recovery. Voters deserve to know how it’s all going to add up.

“ACT published its alternative budget last week. Labour in opposition published its election year alternative budget shortly after the Budget, and then updated that budget at the Pre-Election Fiscal and Economic Update. The scale of the changes being proposed here demands that National do the same.

“There is no need to wait until the Pre-Election Fiscal and Economic Update. National has all the data it needs now. They can do a line-by-line review of the Budget and tell voters what they would cut to fund their tax cuts,” said Craig Renney.

National replied by admitting that the figures were probably right.  But they insisted that they will not be releasing their alternative budget until the PREFU is released just before the election.

The timing will be incredibly tight.  I can understand their nervousness given the fiasco that was National’s last attempt at an alternative budget but the country deserves better.  We ought to be told as soon as possible what they are going to cut to fund tax cuts for rich people and landlords.

Then over the weekend the attention moved to superannuation.

In her speech to the Labour Congress Carmel Sepuloni drew the line in the sand and said very clearly that Labour will not increase the age of retirement.

From her speech:

Delegates, National and Act are warming up once again to mess with people’s Super. They’ve got form in this area, and it never ends well.

They are working on policies that will see people so much worse off by the time they retire.

It includes raising the age of Super to 67 and stopping government contributions to Kiwisaver.

I’ll give you an example of what that will mean. We’ve done the maths.

And I urge Kiwis to also take a very careful look at what it’ll mean for them.

If you’re a 30-year-old earning an average fulltime wage, you would lose $521.43 a year because an ACT-National coalition would cut matching contributions to Kiwi Saver.

With interest, this would mean that that young person would have $46,000 less when they retire.

And they’re asking that person to retire two years’ later. Raising superannuation age to 67 means they’ll lose another $51,000.

If you’re a young person I have this to say to you – the Coalition of Cuts will take more than $98,000 off your retirement.

As pointed out by Claire Trevett National then fell for the trap, hook line and sinker.  From the Herald:

As far as campaign policies go, Labour’s announcement it will keep the super age at 65 was the most underwhelming in some time – but it got them exactly what they wanted, and that is a war with National over super.

The main announcement from Carmel Sepuloni at the party’s Congress in Wellington was an announcement of things Labour won’t do rather than what it will.

None of them was surprising. The superannuation age would stay at 65, the Winter Energy Payment would stay, and …. wait for it …. government contributions to the NZ Super Fund would also stay.

The aim was not so much to show off Labour’s policies – but to advertise National’s and Act’s, both of whom want to lift the super age to 67 and have halted Super Fund contributions in the past.

It worked a treat. Within an hour, a thundering press release came from National’s Nicola Willis accusing Labour of “trying to score some cheap political points by hypocritical scaremongering.”

She then accused Labour of being fiscally irresponsible for holding it at 65 – which coincidentally is exactly what Labour says of National’s tax cuts.

It will be a bit of a test of just how politically toxic it still is to talk about raising the age of super. It used to be a death knell policy. It is never going to be one of the policies a party advertises on its billboards.

Is it hypocritical scaremongering?  Well Labour did have a policy in 2014 of raising the age of retirement but reversed it and has had settled policy ever since.  And here is the silly thing about National’s hypocrisy claim.  In 2014 it said that it would not increase the retirement age but it has changed its mind.  Hypocritical much?

Concern about NZ Super contributions is not far fetched.  Last time National gutted the payments and the scheme at the very time that payments would have been most fruitful.

Concerns about Kiwisaver are not unwarranted scaremongering.  And as I said previously National’s attacks are really rich.  Ever since its creation National has sought to undermine Kiwisaver.  Do you remember when:

  • National opposed the introduction of Kiwisaver and John Key famously called it a glorified Christmas Club.  Maybe for merchant bankers but I can think of many first home buyers and retirees who have benefitted from it.  And National opposed it all the way.
  • After it was elected National halved the state contributions to Kiwisaver accounts from $1,040 to $520 per year even though in 2008 they promised not to do this.
  • National also removed the $1,000 kickstart contribution and John Key said it would not make a blind bit of difference to the numbers joining.

National’s policy will not save the country any money, at least in the meantime.  Its effects if it is enacted will not be felt until 2037.  But it will allow National to cancel Cullen fund contributions which is I suspect the desired outcome, even though the Cullen fund has been described as a well-respected and well-performing sovereign wealth fund which has set a high standard in socially responsible investing.

And in terms of hypocrisy how about this?

When Labour proposed a modest increase in Kiwisaver fees to level the playing field for providers Christopher Luxon said this:

“We’re going to stop it. I actually think the team of five million people needs to stand up this week and actually say to the Government, ‘Enough, stop’ and actually get the Government to withdraw it,” Luxon said.

“This is such a bad idea – a retirement tax when we’re trying to encourage people into KiwiSaver, it makes no sense.”

This was a change that would increase the amount paid by an average Kiwisaver account holder by $80 per year from 2026.  National’s policies have been estimate to cost the average taxpayer $100,000.  Hypocritical much?

Superannuation is back in the political arena.  I suspect that National’s policies will become a millstone for the party.

68 comments on “Superannuation policy becomes political ”

  1. PsyclingLeft.Always 1

    Nact fact…they dont give a shit about anyone. (well apart from themselves )

    I do have some links to show how this Nact Retirement stab was received….and the future impact on many.

    https://thestandard.org.nz/carmel-sepuloni-bring-it-on/#comment-1951758

    Nact…..would be the Coalition of Chaos….for Future NZ

  2. Chris 2

    Someone should ask Luxon if he thinks Muldoon was correct to scrap Kirk's compulsory super scheme in 1975.

    • tc 2.1

      Didn't Lange and douglas build another that bolger /shipley dismantled ?…cant recall was overseas.

    • Rae. 2.2

      Reply to Chris, Luxon would not have a clue…

      Greece was bankrupted.

      Are the Greeks still in debt?

      In 2021, the national debt in Greece was around 401.71 billion U.S. dollars.

      Greece: National debt from 2018 to 2028 (in billion U.S. dollars)

  3. This attack on Super by National follows the pattern of wooing current vote at the expense of future voters. It follows the strip and redistribute to the wealthy now, as tax cuts.

    This is also their attitude to investment in future infrastructure and or welfare. Money aimed at the impoverished is funneled through the contracts and sieves to extract all real benefit before it trickles late to the "deserving poor"

    They still are Calvinists at heart. You are literally. one of the "Chosen" or one of the "Damned" .(If you are already wealthy you will do better. If you are poor, it is your lot… just accept it.)sad

    Labour and the Greens should list all the areas likely to be affected and question them in the House.( Not that Key was truthful last time. "We will not raise GST" then promptly did raise it.!!) All their current flip flops sound similar. Housing Accord anyone??

  4. tsmithfield 4

    I don't get the commotion over National pledging to raise the super age to 67 by 2044. It is not like it is being promised to happen this year or anything.

    Look at how much life expectancy and productivity has changed over the last 2-4 decades. People tend to be productive for much longer now. A two year age raise in the next 20 years or so is probably going to equate with the degree to which working lives have extended by that time.

    And, by that time, the manual jobs that wear people's bodies out, will likely be done by robots. In fact, it is happening already.

    • lprent 4.1

      And, by that time, the manual jobs that wear people's bodies out, will likely be done by robots. In fact, it is happening already.

      You are missing the time lags. The inherent damage actually happens when you are younger. This become pretty obvious as you head towards your 60s. That is when all of those old injuries and work catch up with you.

      Say you have done a job with a lot of physical activity from age 18 to age 45 now. That is 27 years of wear.

      You have already done most of the damage and joint wear already. Having a mythic robot doing most of the wear through the next 20 years from 2023 to 2044 won't make that much difference in the wear that you have at age 65.

      Manual workers generally start dropping out of manual work for one reason or another well before age 60. Finding a 50yo brickie, tiler or plumber would be a miracle already that is about as rare as finding a 6yo employed as a active coder. They pretty much don't exist.

      So having a bricklaying machine from 5 years ago on youtube does absolutely nothing for a 65yo in 2044. 5 years later in NZ they don’t even exist. Hell I don’t expect that the technology will exist here in another 10 years.

      But ignoring that kind of fairy tale., our brickie will still have the same fucked up body and shorter expected lifespan. And they have still paid all of their taxes towards a superannuation.

      You argument about automation only makes sense if there was a widely used brick-laying machine in say 1995 – so our hypothetical brick layer hadn't been paying taxes for a superannuation on the expectation of worn out body at age 50.

      Essentially National and you are arguing that you should steal from people who would have less of a actuarial likelihood to ever receive a superannuation under the change because they don't want to contribute to the super fund for a demographic bulge. And do the same heartless thieving for tax cuts for a second time.

      • tsmithfield 4.1.1

        This problem exists now, before 65. And, we manage that through the welfare system. It will be the same in twenty years, I expect. People who are unable to work will have to be cared for one way or another.

        Another point is that we have had a major increase in health and safety rules over the last twenty years. So, injuries that reduce work-life should be viewed as work hazards, and companies should have been finding ways to minimise these. So, hopefully, going forward, the problem will not be as bad as it has been.

        As the linked article in my post below shows, Labour were proposing to have transitioned to 67 by 2033 starting in 2020. So, if Labour had their way back then, we would be three years into the process by now.

        So, if you are critical of National’s proposal now, I imagine you would have absolutely been revulsed by Labour’s proposal back then?

        • lprent 4.1.1.1

          So what you want is to subject the worn out elderly to 2 more years under the National's carefully built punitive and tortuous social welfare system before they can move to the much simpler and cost-effective superannuation system.

          You do realise that the costs of our superannuation system for people on sickness and disabled benefits has been designed by National to torture people. Are you a sadist by nature, or was it nurtured in you?

          If you think that I am exaggerating then I suggest that you go and volunteer as a advocate at WINZ some time and watch their staff closely. It really isn't a pretty sight of seeing the lengths that some will go to deny benefits that I pay for, and on the way through wasting a lot of taxes.

          National are really good at fucking simple systems up and making them conplex and expensive. Changing the age from 65-67 and pushing more people onto the punitive parts of the welfare system is exactly in line with their usual policies.

          • tsmithfield 4.1.1.1.1

            Going back to our discussion following my earlier post, my company works in the field of automation. That is, automation powered by compressed air.

            Over that time, we have seen a lot of manual jobs converted to automation. For instance, when we started our company about 40 years ago now, it was common for people to be manually screwing on bottle tops.

            A lot of manual labour has been automated over that time, and it will continue. So, to your earlier point, there will be less bodies wearing out now, due to changes over time. And that will continue.

            We really don't know how much things will have changed over the next twenty years. But, they will have changed a lot, in many areas.

            I think, in the end, we need political consensus on superannuation, as this will be a political football going forward with the goal-posts constantly changing.

            • lprent 4.1.1.1.1.1

              Actually I tend to agree. But you have to factor in time scales and how long it takes for technology to penetrate to where it needs to be. Not to mention that just releases people off to do other things with their general purpose hardware.

              I was running a plant back in 1983-1985 where we used pneumatics extensively on a production line. I spent quite a lot of time fixing it. It saved a lot of manual labour and gave better production quality when it was working well. We also had forklifts, good storage frameworks, and some excellent production line gear.

              It still didn't handle the humping of heavy boxes of product around getting it off the production line and on to and off pallets. Nor did it handle the opening of bagged raw material and humping into into mixing. That was done by the near universal easier to program general purpose labour, including me. To know how to improve any process, you really need to do it yourself.

              That was 40 years ago, when I was under the age of 25.

              in 1990 I decided I was wanting to build a career in programming (rather than continuing as a manager) because we needed to automate and teach with code.

              So for the last 33 years I have been writing code that deals with everything from server networks to processor boards that can be held in a hand. From systems running simple electronic actuators to system that bind via radio and cable tens of thousands of devices on thousands of bits of equipment into a single system. I program server boxes with massive numbers of cores, RAM and drives and I also program single or dual board systems with minimal processing grunt and storage to connect to larger systems.

              I haven't seen a pneumatic system for decades. But I'd bet that most of it is now controlled by processors, SOCs and SBCs and the muscle provided by gaseous or other compression systems. Much easier to deal with than trying to build a logic system with valves.

              Computer systems are ubiquitous. I'm sure that pneumatic automated systems are as well.

              But the number of roles that general purpose (people) self-programming system fulfil has been rising too. Consider a barista for instance. We have machines that do that task with flair for small situations. Yet we also have baristas who can operate in a parallel mode doing a complex and exacting physical task.

              I spent time watching one over the weekend, and decide that I couldn't figure out how to optimise that (my MBA major was in operations research). It was a profession that really didn't exist 40 years ago here.

              Yet there are probably a at least a few hundred doing it within 2 km of my location (corner of K Rd and Ponsonby Rd in Auckland).

              I also figured that the job itself was one that in a high volume area would cause some kind of body burnout within 20 years.

              Watched someone installing a new head unit into my car 2 weeks ago. I can't even conceive of being able to do do that with automation in a workshop with 30 different types of vehicles. The process was as much by intuition and body skill as anything else. The contortions to disconnect and reconnect that were a tapestry of motion. Also something that was strictly for the young. Needless to say it was nothing like the last car-radio I installed myself back in the mid-90s.

              I have issues these days doing my own computer maintenance because of various physical impairments, and I have been doing that since 1986. Around 2000, I used to routinely fix everyone computers for friends families.

              Basically automation doesn't make that much of a difference at a physical level for humans. As we automate machine level jobs, we invent new jobs for ourselves tat rely on local strength, dexterity, and ability to self-program.

              After looking at this for for nearly 5 decades, I have concluded that automation augments but doesn't replace the uses of human strength and agility. And that people will keep wearing out at differing rates.

              Talking of which my wrists are complaining about tapping at the keyboard. I'd better do some debugging / compiling and rest them for a while. I have had two rounds of OOS and taken time to repair them. Don't want to wear it out again.

              BTW: You can find viable brick-laying machines back in the 1920’s and 1930’s patents. For some reason that never seem to take off in the market place.

              😈

              • tsmithfield

                There was a chart I saw the other day (can't find it now unfortunately) that rated careers in their vulnerability to being replaced by AI/Automation.

                Maintenance technicians were at the bottom of the list. As I suspect that even robots will require being maintained for the conceivable future. That is, until robots start maintaining robots.

                I think it is good to have discussions about superannuation and other aspects to do with our rapidly changing future outside the political lense. Because it is something that will increasingly affect all of us going forward.

                • alwyn

                  Here is one view on what jobs are most likely to go.

                  This may cause some dissension in this conversation The most likely job to be replaced, at least in this article was

                  "Jobs which rely on technology are at the biggest risk of being taken over by AI.

                  According to Insider, coders, computer programmers and software engineers are set to be easily replaced by the advent of new technology such as ChatGP."

                  https://www.9news.com.au/national/jobs-ai-will-replace-technology/dcaf8d90-14cb-426e-8605-712555ad4995#11

                  • tsmithfield

                    I was talking to a guy who teaches mechanical engineering at polytech.

                    He was saying he is encouraging students to use the likes of ChatGPT for assignments etc. He said that to do a good assignment using ChatGPT students still needed to have good knowledge of the subject matter, otherwise ChatGPT would just spit out a very generic answer, not specific to the application of interest.

                    So, I think this sort of technology won't get rid of humans from the process. But it will just speed things up to the point where one person can do the work of five or whatever.

                    And, so far as coding/writing programs go, it is probably just a further progression along the lines of WYSIWYG.

                    So, in any of these applications, I imagine humans will just be thinking at a higher level and thus speeding up processes.

                    • Adrian

                      I thought university was about teaching how to think, not to have shit in your head that you have no idea how it got there.

                    • lprent

                      And, so far as coding/writing programs go, it is probably just a further progression along the lines of WYSIWYG.

                      Being able to write a useful search query for alta-vista or google so you can find what you're after fast.

                      Or cmake rather than make. Using devop pipelines. Having a profiler that works. Static analysis. Unit-tests for fast response regression tests.

                      Tools. ChatGPT will do be the same. Sketch a skeleton code like RAD was meant to do.

                      So, in any of these applications, I imagine humans will just be thinking at a higher level and thus speeding up processes.

                      Mostly saying "that won't work, lets try this to to get a bit closer" and then filling in the last bits themselves.

                  • lprent

                    According to Insider, coders, computer programmers and software engineers are set to be easily replaced by the advent of new technology such as ChatGP."

                    Sure they will. This has actually happened in the industry at least 4 times in the last 30 years already while I have been working in it for pay. Most Cobol and VB programmers never retrained or were retained for instance. I can see that starting to happen with some of the stack programmers to getting over specialised to particular solutions. Same for the c# systems with those interesting repo issues.

                    But you have to remember that is just the usual winnowing. We're having a dieback now with layoffs.

                    Most coders tend to be people who live on stack overflow or inside RAD styles environments pumping out routine code for corporates. Average residence time as a coder is about 10-15 years before they obsolete themselves. They tend to become other things to support their mortgages in diebacks like this.

                    So far that is all that I am seeing. But each time the innovation world in tech moved on, the toolchain got incorporated and we had a expended industry a few years later.

                    Personally I learnt Pascal, Cobol, Fortran and C 43 years ago as a interest on a DEC 1170 – a mini-computer with a teeny fraction of the processing power of a modern smart watch. I dropped out of being a manger and started mainly building networked processes 30 years ago, mostly on the GUI side and almost entirely in windows.

                    I didn't do it as a career. I did it because I just wasn't interested in a career and followed an interest. Mostly people who do this just keep working in the edge space places. Because they solve problems that aren't well known

                    These days and after several complete shifts later, I mostly write servers-side subsystems on linux and endpoint SOC systems on linux. I'm sure that I have at least one more major shift before I stop working for pay.

                    Writing code as a formula with lots of examples is easy for a machine or for a hack coder. You mostly have to search and read stack overflow. Machines are good at that and at doing generic testing. That is what coders use them for. grunt work. Well them and the hack coders.

                    The problem is when you have a system with few examples to follow and most of them are wrong. yocto comes to mind….

                    I don't get employed to code. I get employed to solve knotty problems.

                    • alwyn

                      I spent quite some time in the 1980's working on banking systems using IMS Fastpath. That was a DBMS and TMS developed by IBM in the 1960's.

                      It is still in use, particularly for very high volume banking applications. I find it truly amazing that something developed so long ago is still, apparently, the first choice for such processing.

            • bwaghorn 4.1.1.1.1.2

              Can you hurry and design something that can drench sheep and cattle, shift crop fences in the snow, dag sheep, shear sheep, .

              Ever tried building? The never stop.lifting and carrying,

        • bwaghorn 4.1.1.2

          Hardly dignified that people who have toiled are going to have to go begging and scraping to the welfare don't you thin

      • PsyclingLeft.Always 4.1.2

        Say you have done a job with a lot of physical activity from age 18 to age 45 now. That is 27 years of wear.

        Well…I am a bit further on than that : ). And still doing some hard Landscape garden yakka. Even my part time Bicycle mechanic job (mostly self taught) has a quite physical component.

        I can relate to a lot you have said in this thread. (incl about the head unit fitting in your car ! )

        Those mean arse Nact shits would punish the young. To benefit the rich.

        Thanks for putting your considered thoughts on here…I rate them highly.

    • TS, the life expectancy for Maori and Pacifica is always lagging, and although it has improved by 3 years * that is like saying no 12 years of retirement for you.

      Equity demands remedies other than constantly shifting the goal posts.surprise

    • AB 4.3

      the manual jobs that wear people's bodies out, will likely be done by robots…

      And of course the employers who own the robots will use this to gradually reduce the working week of manual workers – perhaps to more tasks requiring superior dexterity, judgment and experience, while naturally paying them the same wages. Oh what a nirvana of enlightened virtue it will be – free markets always reach a humane equilibrium of endless forward progress.

      Only a churlish socialist would be so negative as to think that those ex-manual workers might be left staring at nothing much except a blank wall, a sadistic welfare system and a niggardly pension now delayed till 67, but at least given with no questions asked.

    • bwaghorn 4.4

      I'm 51 , I started pushing milk trolleys at 13, I've been a manual labourer all these years, I don't suit sitting on my arse or workshopping, and am not keen on driving things for a living. So not complaining.

      I'll be buggered by 65.

      I like the idea that the pension can be taken any time between 60 and 70, with early takers getting less than those that keep plugging away till 70.

  5. Hunter Thompson II 5

    It would be interesting to see what happened if NZ Super was made optional at 65 years of age, so if you carried on working you put off getting the government's largesse.

    Some people might like to keep on with their jobs for a year or two; others would be well off already and wouldn't need the extra money.

    A sort of voluntary means testing I suppose.

    • RedLogix 5.1

      Yes – in my comment below I've already pointed out this is effectively what I am already doing.

    • lprent 5.2

      Ummm. I think that you should educate yourself about super.

      It would be interesting to see what happened if NZ Super was made optional at 65 years of age, so if you carried on working you put off getting the government's largesse.

      It is already optional at 65. Quite a lot of eligible people don't take it up. I'm bouncing it around at present because I am eligible in about a year.

      Some people might like to keep on with their jobs for a year or two…

      I think that is something like 40% per people eligible. I certainly don't want to stop working. It is too much fun. I would like more options about when and how much I work.

      Since superannuation is taxed, you may get quite a lot of tax on it if you keep working.

      For me, it will be mostly in the SA (39%) tax code so super, at $879.58 per fortnight, will be taxed at 39% and I will receive $537.16 in the hand to pay GST on. That is about 14k in the hand per year and $8.9k tax.

      But at the same time I lose the 3% of income that my employer pays for kiwisaver, the $520 that the tax department contributes for kiwisaver annually. That is around 4k pa after tax.

      Becomes a question about how much hassle claiming it or not claiming it becomes.

      The kicker about deciding to claim it will probably come down to where do we plan to live longer term.

      There isn't enough room in our one-bedroom apartment for both of us here at the same time working on things. At present we work around that by hiring a extra workspace for $600 odd per month so that we don't have telephone conversations over each other while working at home. But I don't think that is sustainable long-term. Nor is the $5500 pa in annual combined body corporate, water, building insurance and rates.

      We will need a house for when I actually stop working. We may wind up with a mortgage again (if we don't leave Auckland). I need a actual enclosed home office (bedroom), garage (hardware workbench) and a yard.

      I also want a roof for solar / wind and to get off the grid. There really isn't any future in me paying electricity shareholder dividends as a surcharge if I have the space and capital to eliminate it. And outside of central Auckland, I'd want to have dependable power and starlink.

      Preferable doing house changing before I stop working. I may also stop the 10% of salary income I pay into kiwisaver and pass that to the bank shareholders instead. It gets to be a faster mortgage kill. But it is a hell of a price to stay in Auckland. I really don't want to sink my accumulated kiwisaver and savings into living in Auckland

      So I haven't decided if I will claim super or not until I stop formally working.

  6. tsmithfield 6

    The other thing is that Labour has flip flopped over Superannuation.

    Twelve years ago, the then Labour government was all for raising the age of Super to 67, and by much earlier than National is proposing. Chippy was part of that government, so I assume would have supported that proposed change.

    • lprent 6.1

      Lying by selection as usual. So where is the National equivalent for

      Employer contributions to KiwiSaver would also increase from by 0.5 per cent a year to three per cent in 2014 and seven per cent by 2022.

      The policies were needed to deal with the growing superannuation and health bills being racked up by New Zealand's ageing population, Mr Goff told Radio New Zealand this morning.

      National as far as I am aware are planning to increase the age of superannuation without doing anything to secure funding for superannuation or health care for aging demographics.

      According to what I have seen of the implications of their slogans (policies?), they are planning on dumping all contributions to the superannuation fund, and actively trying to stop increasing money into the public health care systems to deal with demographic changes. Presumably in the latter case to make private health care more profitable for lazy unproductive rentier shareholders.

      BTW:

      Chippy was part of that government, so I assume would have supported that proposed change.

      Dumb-arse lie. 12 years ago was 2011. Wasn't that the period of the John Key government? Weren't Labour in opposition? This is the kind of error that you routinely see in National’s rewrites of history. I guess that was where you got these words from?

      • tsmithfield 6.1.1

        Dumb-arse lie.

        Silly mistake actually. I should have said "part of the Labour party".

        In the end, we are talking 20 years or so out. So, it really is all blue sky stuff at the moment, whoever proposes it. I am sure there will be a few changes in government over that time, and there would be nothing to stop a future Labour government from reversing that change.

        • lprent 6.1.1.1

          I'd be more interested in it if there were any signs of National being aware of dealing with the demographic shifts in 20 years – like forward loading into the NZ Superannuation fund, or simplifying access to early superannuation for people on disabilities or unemployment in their late 50s or early 60s. But I don't see any of that.

          I just see a grasping pack of idiots wanting to fund tax-cuts and ignoring their existing responsibilities.

          What do you think that the rationale for National's policy is? Framed in terms of the benefit for people approaching the superannuation system that they have paid for since 1975 or 1995 when they started working.

          To me it looks like a policy framed to benefit people who started paying taxes after 2015.

          • tsmithfield 6.1.1.1.1

            I'd be more interested in it if there were any signs of National being aware of dealing with the demographic shifts in 20 years

            The only way we can really deal with those issues is through cross-party consensus. Perhaps a working group that looks at all the issues and makes a best guess.

            But, things are changing so very rapidly in many areas. I don't know if you saw that TV1 News item on how AI has identified new anti-biotics to target super-bugs that are a major problem in hospitals. But there will be a lot more of these sort of discoveries. There will be a lot more advances in how people can stay healthy and productive for longer.

            The impact of AI and automation will be enormous going forward. So, likely, the retirement age will be the least of our worries, I suspect.

          • Rae O'Connor 6.1.1.1.2

            Untruthfulness much T Smithfield?

            Thank you Iprent.

            As you said National and Act cannot be trusted ever for anything. They call the poor of Aotearoa Bottom Feeders. I don't trust them as far as they can be thrown. Every second sentence from NActs has a falsehood in it.

            Saw on RNZ last week that American Dr's lied to people about Covid, they tried for Herd Immunity. This Scientist said if America had followed what Aotearoa was doing re Covid, 800 Thousand Americans would be alive today. Thank goodness for NZ Labour Greens Coalition who kept us alive and looking ahead to mitigate Climate Change. Which I might add NActs don't believe is happening. Vote NZ Labour Greens Coalition. Thinking of young Voters here; Labour Greens Coalition..They did us proud in everything and everywhere for last 6 years. Only they care about Climate Change. Thank goodness for them. They listen and get the job done.

            • weka 6.1.1.1.2.1

              please don’t bold blocks of text. We reserve bolded type for moderation.

        • Long term planning and saving and investing over 20 to 25 years used to be usual for the middle class. Large disruptive events , "87 crash, 2008 crash, Covid 2020 have caused losses for many, hence hedging in housing became popular. Then greed set in, and here we are trying to fix all those past errors, while planning for an ever more problematic CC future. Moving goal posts just makes it nigh impossible and people start thinking "why bother?", but perhaps that is the end game. A beaten down dispirited easily led population??? As has been indicated by others here, this 67 age flies in the face of the studies and proof.

  7. Mac1 7

    Interesting that National are continuing with their age raise for Super given this research finding.

    https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2023/04/superannuation-new-research-reveals-more-support-for-hiking-taxes-and-keeping-age-at-65-than-raising-it-to-67.html

    Following is my précis of the above article by Jamie Ensor published 12/4/23.

    It says that New Zealanders remain opposed to raising the age of Superannuation to 67 or introducing means-testing, but are willing to pay more in tax now to reduce the burden on future generations, new research has found.

    • Kiwis are opposed to means-testing Superannuation
    • the universality of the scheme remains the most important aspect to Kiwis, though less important than in 2014.
    • almost a quarter of participants saw the age of eligibility at 65 as the most important aspect of Superannuation, more than the fifth who did in 2014.
    • raising the age of eligibility to 67 was ranked by 61 percent of the respondents as the worst of the seven options, making it the option ranked worst by the largest number of people, the report said. The unpopularity of this policy has increased compared to 2014.
    • majority of people would still be willing to pay higher taxes now (an additional 2 percent for everyone) to reduce the need to raise taxes on future generations.
    • there has been a "sizeable increase" in the number of participants much less confident they will have a comfortable retirement than in 2014.
    • 40 percent of people aged 65 and over have virtually no other income besides NZ Super and another 20 percent only have that, and a little more.
  8. Mike the Lefty 8

    You know I actually wouldn't mind so much if the retirement age was increased incrementally to 67 if the saved money would go into infrastructure, but I'll be f..d if I will tolerate having my super delayed for another couple of years just so some rich prick earning a big salary can get a nice fat juicy tax cut now.

    National might just have cost itself the election. If NZ First gets back into parliament (although I think its unlikely) National will have blown another potential coalition partner.

    What with National supporting building more yuppie housing estates on prime agricultural land near cities and p…..ng off their farmer friends they seem to be a party looking for an excuse to lose an election that they should win in a canter.

    • tc 8.1

      'farmer friends' is the national party pre key it's all about serving the top end and international capital since then IMO.

    • Mike the Lefty 8.2

      Update on my last point.

      There is an ad circulating on Facebook for the Kamahi Fund which is all for turning rural land into urban land.

      The worst kind of urban sprawl which is taking prime agricultural land and turning into yuppie housing estates and the associated traffic problems.
      This kind of housing development is not about solving NZ’s housing problems, it is all about getaways for the rich pretending they live in “rural” areas.

      That is what we will get under National.

      National – the party that hates productive agricultural land being converted to forests. But they have no problem with such land being made into lifestyle blocks for rural townies with cushy corporate jobs and Ford Ranger utes.

      National there for farmers!!!!!!

      Yeah right!

  9. Thebiggestfish 9

    Superannuation is an area where both National and Labour have just been so poor on. Constant flip flopping. The current model is unsustainable with our aging population. Either the age needs to go up or we need to look at means testing. Unfortunately National and Labour MPs are just bickering children and will not take any action towards a solution until the last minute.

    • lprent 9.1

      The current model is unsustainable with our aging population. Either the age needs to go up or we need to look at means testing.

      Complete bullshit by someone who hasn't bothered to bestir their lazy arse to look at what actually has been happening.

      Somehow you managed to overlook the NZ Superannuation fund? (my italics)

      New Zealand currently provides universal superannuation for people over 65 years of age and the purpose of the Fund is to partially pre-fund the future cost of the New Zealand Superannuation pension, which is expected to increase as a result of New Zealand's ageing population.

      Which was a third alternative that was put into place in 2001 specifically to deal with that issue.

      It was to be funded by the NZ government prudently putting in funds to deal with an upcoming demographic issue expected to start hitting after 2035 until the 2060s. Most of the benefit was to be from profits from investments. The more money that the government put in earlier, the better the returns when required.

      So…

      The sovereign fund posted a record 25.8% return in the twelve months till 30 June 2013.[9] In the 2009 New Zealand budget the National Government suspended payments to the fund.[10] Contributions were proposed to resume in 2020/21 when the Government's net debt to GDP was forecast to fall below 20% again.[11] Instead, the new Labour-led government started payments into the superfund again in December 2017.[12] The New Zealand Government had contributed $21.8 b to the fund as at 31 March 2022.[13]

      National has never put in a cent, preferring instead to imprudently divert resources to funding unsustainable tax cuts and a speculative real-estate bubble.

      Labour has continued to prudently pre-fund the superannuation system into the future by taxes from the people who will receive its benefits..

      And that is before you look at kiwisaver as an alternate way of pre-loading superannuation recipient fiscal requirements.

    • RedLogix 9.2

      NZ is fortunate to have a demographic pyramid that is nowhere near as inverted as many other nations:

      https://www.populationpyramid.net/new-zealand/2023/

      Nonetheless ageing is no longer quite the same proposition as it was when the scheme was first set up to provide largely for the Silent Generation who came before us Boomers.

      What we are seeing is not only a gradual increase in life expectancy, but a dramatic shift in health expectancy. But in this there is a huge range of circumstances and outcomes. Some people – like my father's attorney was still holding chambers at the age of 96 and doing just fine. Others are nowhere near as fortunate.

      I would suggest lowering the age of Superannuation entitlement to say 60 – but means test it fairly generously so that those who are capable and desiring of continuing to work into their 70's and 80's are encouraged to do so, while those whose working life is curtailed by the physical demands of it, or loss of health, are able to access Super at an age when they might still have a dignified retirement.

      As it happens I have forgone NZ Super I am entitled to for some years now, because working in Australia remains a better bet for me – which is probably an explanation for my viewpoint on this.

      • tsmithfield 9.2.1

        Hi Red,

        I agree with you on increasing health and life span going forward.

        But I also think that there will be profound changes to careers and job opportunities going forward.

        If we end up in a highly automated society that leads to mass redundancy, then there will be major issues around how taxes will be generated to fund the social aspects of our society. I think the creatives in Hollywood are very justified in being concerned about their careers from what I have seen.

        Of course, there is the counter argument that changes to the way we do things opens up new career opportunities as a result. So, that may be the case going forward as well. But the changes could be so profound and wide ranging, that it may not be the case anymore.

        I think that is the context that discussions around retirement age needs to be framed in.

        • lprent 9.2.1.1

          If we end up in a highly automated society that leads to mass redundancy, then there will be major issues around how taxes will be generated to fund the social aspects of our society.

          This isn't a new worry. 1958, the year before I was born.

          https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/05/30/rick-wartzman-book-excerpt-automation-donald-trump-215207/


          The Nation termed it an “Automation Depression.” “We are stumbling blindly into the automation era with no concept or plan to reconcile the need of workers for income and the need of business for cost-cutting and worker-displacing innovations,” the magazine said in November 1958. “A part of the current unemployment … is due to the automation component of the capital-goods’ boom which preceded the recession. The boom gave work while it lasted, but the improved machinery requires fewer man-hours per unit of output.” This conundrum, moreover, would outlast present conditions and become even more apparent in an economy that was supposed to accommodate 1 million new job seekers every year. “The problem we shall have to face some time,” the Nation concluded, “is that the working force is expansive, while latter-day industrial technology is contractive of man-hours.”

          Even in the 1950s, angst about what automation would mean for employment was not new. Economists started to explore the issue in the early 1800s, during the Industrial Revolution. Most classical theorists of the time—including J. B. Say, David Ricardo and John Ramsey McCulloch—held that introducing new machines would, save perhaps for a brief period of adjustment, produce more jobs than they’d destroy. By the end of the century, concern had faded nearly altogether. “Because the general upward trends in investment, production, employment and living standards were supported by evidence that could not be denied,” the economic historian Gregory Woirol has written, “technological change ceased to be seen as a relevant problem.” But fears reappeared in the mid-to-late 1920s, as America experienced two mild recessions and newly published productivity data indicated that machines were perhaps eating more jobs than was first believed. “This country has upon its hands a problem of chronic unemployment, likely to grow worse rather than better,” the Journal of Commerce, a trade and shipping industry publication, opined in 1928. “Business prosperity, far from curing it, may tend to aggravate it by stimulating invention and encouraging all sorts of industrial rationalization schemes.”

          If you go back to the invention of the printing press you'll find worries about technological unemployment.

          Sure it happens, but is usually relatively short-lived and seldom structural over a decade. Usually the biggest issue has been in processes trying to alleviate technological unemployment – and that goes all the way back to Roman times.

          Wikipedia has a good historical over-view page including a extensive linkage on the topic.

          However I'd also point out that demographics are going to play a massive part

          NZ in particular now has some pretty consistent structural employment shortages. But it is the same throughout most developed populations and almost every part of the world outside of sub-Saharan Africa (which had a 4 decade HIV epidemic and low population growth).

          Can't see that data mining algorithms are going to change that. Take Hollywood or gaming.

          What we will get is the kind of tech expansions like the Doom/Quake algorithm for angle did to SGI (umm read it on quanta today can't find it now – this is about the algorithm with the code). It did a fast inverse square root at integer level and changed graphics processing.

          int i = *(int*)&x; // evil floating point bit level hack
          i = 0x5f3759df – (i >> 1); // what the fuck?
          x = *(float*)&i;
          x = x*(1.5f-(xhalf*x*x));

          It wasn't perfect, but it was close enough for gaming and video. All of a sudden you didn't have to work in super-expensive specialised SGI floating processors in system that cost 100+k USD, you could do it on a high end PC – like Next. So SGI lost a competitive advantage to a one-line of integer based code. THye tried to flip to server code and failed.

          Once this got used, it caused a re-evaluation of graphics algorithms and so we got the kinds of processing that is far enough to get close to real-time graphics.

          It also exploded into a whole new gaming and CGI industry that is way larger than the whole film and film distribution industry worldwide. It employs skills, but also includes some pretty unskilled

          • Nic the NZer 9.2.1.1.1

            Your link and other sources only attribute that codes appearance to Quake 3. Doom 1&2 was a quasi 3d engine and I think only used sprite lighting for shadows anyway.

          • tsmithfield 9.2.1.1.2

            I don't disagree with you. You may well be right (and I hope you are), and I allowed for both possibilities in my post as well.

            But, things do seem a little different this time. Humans will still obviously be required in all jobs. But, if technology is speeding up the process so much, then there may be a lot less jobs in most areas.

            People will need to adapt and learn the new technology, or they will be unemployable in the future I think. That something that really concerns me about the high disengagement from education at the moment. We could be breeding a whole generation that is largely unemployable. The impact on society could be quite disturbing.

    • SPC 9.3

      Until 1975

      We had means tested pension age 60-65 and the same rate universal super over age 65

      1980's

      We briefly had a surtax in the 80's on those with other income receiving universal super from age 60. The alternative to this was payment of super to only those who had retired from work (thus investment income would not be surtaxed) but Hercus was not keen (being concerned about those working after age 60 because of an unpaid mortgage).

      1990's

      An increase from age 60 to 65 and those in their 60's unable to work received the (1991) slashed benefit level poverty.

      2002

      A NZ Super Fund – a 30 year effort to save money to provide some capability to assist meet the future cost of tax paid super after 2030

      2005

      Kiwi Saver – tax credits to encourage saving.

  10. Mike the Lefty 10

    The third Labour government's NZ Super scheme, if left alone, would have made superannuation largely self-funding by now but National, out of spite, abolished it in 1976 and replaced it with the unaffordable model that we have today.

    Good going National!

  11. joe90 11

    Is it hypocritical scaremongering?

    Yup.

    Te Ara Ahunga Ora Policy Papers 01/2021New Zealand retirement income policies and how they compare within the OECD

    […]

    Figure 2. Basic pensions as a percentage of gross average earnings by country.
    Source: OECD Stat doi.org/10.1787/888934041250

    https://assets.retirement.govt.nz/public/Uploads/Retirement-Income-Policy-Review/TAAO-RC-Policy-Paper-2021-02.pdf

    • Phillip ure 11.1

      That graphic should be put on an election poster by labour..

      Then they can just point at it if /when national kicks off with their bullshit..

  12. Reality 12

    National/Act keep talking about tax cuts. Has it been widely publicised what all wage and salary levels would actually get? Luxon would get $18,000 a year which sounds attractive but what does someone earning $40,000, $50,000, $70,000 get per year? Time we heard more detail so people really know how they would be affected.

    And those tax cuts would soon be eaten up by paying for prescriptions and losing the winter energy payment.

    • yes "Tax cuts would soon be eaten up paying for prescriptions and losing the winter energy payment", (plus the Transport subsidies.)crying I agree Reality.

      Which would put our local chemists under pressure from CWH, plus open slather for energy providers, and Public Transport being pressured by private groups… "Oh Yeah!!)

  13. Incognito 13

    I’d think twice before I’d start messing with a dragon of this size: 3,274,808 members enrolled in KiwiSaver as of March 2023.

    https://www.ird.govt.nz/about-us/tax-statistics/kiwisaver/joining/member-demographics

  14. Thinker 14

    (Please don't read my capitals as shouting, I'm highlighting the words…)

    Let's turn things on their head. A message that says we are giving notice that we WILL raise the superannuation age to 67 in 2044 is also a message that we WON'T raise the age of superannuation before 2044.

    Now, let's take 2044 – 65 = 1979, so anyone born before 1979 is unaffected.

    So, anyone 44 or older who is worried about the superannuation age has nothing to fear under National. That could be the real message.

    I downloaded the stats from 2020 election as a spreadsheet and about half of the voting population is over 44. (reference https://elections.nz/democracy-in-nz/historical-events/2020-general-election-and-referendums/voter-turnout-statistics-for-the-2020-general-election/)

    • SPC 14.1

      Any decision on raising the age above age 65 in the 2040's can be delayed till 2029-2032 term.

      Unknowns

      1migration levels 2023-2029 and trends

      2impact of long COVID on the life span of the aged

      3impact of long COVID and our diabetes problem on capacity of people to work till age 65 – we might need to consider super rate benefit payments to those unable to work age 60-65 etc

      4NZSuper Fund value (from c2030 it stops taking in contributions and generates revenues to support super payments).

  15. Sanctuary 15

    I turned sixty earlier this year. I spent the first half of my working life working a hard physical job. The second half has been in sedentary, white collar stuff. I have worked all my life except for the university bit and about one year in total between jobs.

    I am OK physically, but you know what? I am getting tired. The numbers don't come quite as quick as they once did. I've just about had enough of the daily work routine, the aches and pains of being older thrust aside to glue on the smile and screw up the motivation to put in a solid innings. Thursday is the new Friday and the weekend can't come quick enough.

    We all talk about the physical component of retiring but we don't consider the mental landscape. Psychologically everyone at 65 is a 65 year old. Most people can see the first signs of Autumn and yet we make a fetish of the drudgery of work without considering the allure of life's well earned leisure while your health is still good.

    Sure, there are plenty who don't feel that way, who love what they do and will work till they drop or who physically feel great at 74. But the great majority of New Zealanders are not in that boat. Why should we be expected to work until our health is broken and every last drop of economic value wrung from our weary bones? Life isn’t an audition and we only get one go at enjoying it. I’ll be buggered if I’ll let the likes of Seymour loot my wellbeing just so he can give his fat cat mates yet more bags of money.

    PS I have a cold so I am feeling particularly gloomy today.

    • Anne 15.1

      Your story is so common Sanctuary. I can relate to it.

      As a younger person I took on projects that included hard physical labour. I was often chastised by older, wiser people and warned that I would have problems later. I did not heed the warnings because, you know… I was invincible. By my mid-60s the rot in the form of arthritis to joints and back started to set in. I am now disabled to the point I can only walk with a crutch.

      This is a scenario of which the wealthy Nat voting members of the public have no comprehension. They have little experience of 'hard labour'. Help is just a phone call away costing a few coins (to them) and hey-presto its sorted. Add to that the fact the working poor – generally speaking most of us – do not vote for them so compassion and understanding is thin on the ground despite their frequent remonstrations "we are very important to them". Yeah right… but only when it suits them and around election time.

  16. Descendant Of Smith 16

    You don't need to raise the age to adjust things and you can make tax cuts fairer.

    Both these things can be accomplished by lowering the tax rates at the bottom and raising them at the top.

    For super this means if you are able to work and are capable of doing so then you pay more tax the higher your working income is. This gets back some of the NZS cost. No need to set up fancy pantsy means testing.

    I still think making PAYE and student loan deductions payable to IRD at each payday is also a good step to take which can save millions of dollars in unpaid stolen tax.

    There has already been a proxy lifting of the age to a group of us with unwell partners who will now have to work longer until our partners qualify. One moderate income in a two income world is not easy any more.

    And then you see stuff like this. Incomes most of us can only dream about.

    "Canstar found Auckland households needed to earn $219,000 a year to be able to afford an average-priced house and keep up with repayments at current interest rates without going into mortgage stress."

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/132173085/how-much-you-need-to-earn-to-avoid-mortgage-stress

    • Ngungukai 16.1

      Tax needs to be looked at properly and fairly, the wealthy are getting the Tax Breaks and the poor are getting hammered.

      John Key and NACT's Tax Cuts hammered the poor with the GST increases negating any benefits to the poor.

    • Ian Boag 16.2

      No need to set up fancy pantsy means testing.

      What's fancy about income testing/abatement. Super of course is a benefit – the money for today's oldies comes from today's taxpayers. Noone has "paid into a pension fund" because there has never been one. IRD/MSD do it now (benefit abatements) for other benefits … the means are there now.

  17. James Simpson 17

    So for me I believe that I should not receive a pension until 67 at least, and for someone in my father’s position it should be no later than the age of 65. And our young should be able to get jobs.

    Mickysavage

  18. SPC 18

    Of the economists, Olsen at least, is aware of the issue of poverty amongst manual workers unable to work after age 60 and some Maori/Pacifica who have health problems.

    For mine the more pressing issues are poverty caused by unemployment after age 60 and a rising lack of home ownership when people retire.

    So the first change I would make

    1. super rate benefits for those unable to work after age 60 (and those under 65 with disability and those off work because of heart attacks and cancer treatments – not covered by ACC) and income related rent housing.
    2. funded by means testing super age for those working age 65 to 70 (over 40%)

    Those renting/without mortgage free home ownership (or limited savings) able to receive super while working.

    https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2023/05/brad-olsen-says-new-zealand-should-consider-lifting-superannuation-age.html

    https://retirement.govt.nz/policy-and-research/retirement-income-policy-review/2019-review-of-retirement-income-policies/work-and-the-workforce/

  19. Ian Boag 19

    the Cullen fund has been described as a well-respected and well-performing sovereign wealth fund which has set a high standard in socially responsible investing.

    To me the term "sovereign wealth fund" applies to the likes of Norway where it is left-over money …. The Cullen Fund is pretty much all borrowed money though if that matters.

    • SPC 19.1

      The Cullen Fund is pretty much all borrowed money

      The inputs 2002-2008 were from surpluses.

      National refused to borrow to place any money in 2008-2017 (and they would tax cut any surplus)

      The failure to borrow 2008-2017 (when it was cheap) – given wealth funds grow a lot cost us well over $10B in lost wealth gain (above and beyond borrowing cost).

      The inputs from 2017-2023 – are variable, some from borrowing.

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    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 – 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 Déjà 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
    3 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
    4 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
  • There’s a name for this
    Every year, in the Budget, Parliament forks out money to government agencies to do certain things. And every year, as part of the annual review cycle, those agencies are meant to report on whether they have done the things Parliament gave them that money for. Agencies which consistently fail to ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    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
    1 hour 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
    6 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
    8 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
    9 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
    22 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
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says.  “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024
    Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024  Acknowledgements and opening  Morena, Nga Mihi Nui.  Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau  Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Early visit to Indonesia strengthens ties
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country.   “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • China Foreign Minister to visit
    Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week.  “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Minister opens new Auckland Rail Operations Centre
    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Celebrating 10 years of Crankworx Rotorua
    The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee.  “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Government delivering on tax commitments
    Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today.  “The Amendment Paper represents ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Significant Natural Areas requirement to be suspended
    Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Government classifies drought conditions in Top of the South as medium-scale adverse event
    Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Government partnership to tackle $332m facial eczema problem
    The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced.  “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • NZ, India chart path to enhanced relationship
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level.   “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
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