Written By: Eddie - Date published: 12:38 am, September 25th, 2011 - 43 comments
Out of the blue, John Boscawen has announced he is withdrawing from ACT’s list. It’s an odd departure from an odd man. ‘Family reasons’ is the line. Not exactly creative. Is the real reason National’s ‘fixit’ Bill? Boscawen is a true believer in ACT’s libertarian principles and doesn’t do compromise. Was being asked to sign a retrospective blank cheque the final straw?
Written By: Eddie - Date published: 9:13 am, August 18th, 2011 - 95 comments
John Boscawen thought he was on to a winner yesterday. In an unprecedented move, he asked Parliament’s permission to ask a question of Phil Goff on the youth minimum wage. He got it, and the result was Goff at his very finest. He looked and sounded like a Prime Minister – like a real one, that is, not like Key. Let’s have more questions, Boscawen!
Written By: IrishBill - Date published: 8:38 pm, April 26th, 2011 - 66 comments
Hide’s gone if Calvert or Boscawen jump ship. But so is the one that doesn’t jump. I’m picking Calvert will be the key.
Update: As of noon today 3 News reports that Rodney may be about to go…
Written By: IrishBill - Date published: 4:54 pm, April 26th, 2011 - 22 comments
Rodney Hide’s only chance of staying as the leader of ACT is to keep Hilary Calvert and John “Lamington” Boscawen on side.
Like other commentors, I’m calling time on Hide.
Written By: Eddie - Date published: 11:57 am, November 26th, 2010 - 42 comments
The new foreshore and seabed deal is going sour for the government at both ends. The Maori Party is in a state of virtual civil war with the fundi faction led by Hone Harawira gaining support against Tariana Turia’s sell-out faction. Meanwhile, National is feeling the heat as ACT targets its redneck vote.
Written By: IrishBill - Date published: 1:04 pm, September 22nd, 2010 - 52 comments
Key is strongly backing Hide.
That might be because he doesn’t want to deal with the ideologues who would replace him. Or it might be because Hide knows where the skeletons are buried.
Either way Key’s going to find it harder and harder to distance himself from the mess.
Written By: IrishBill - Date published: 12:00 pm, September 18th, 2010 - 81 comments
One way or another ACT’s troubles are going to ripple through the entire political discourse.
So what’s likely to happen with Garrett?
And what does it mean for everyone else?
Written By: Bunji - Date published: 2:52 pm, August 18th, 2010 - 14 comments
So Rodney can’t keep 4 other people on side. The liberal and authoritarian split in Act has had its blood-letting and the authoritarians have won. Where will the neo-liberal idealogues go? And how will Epsom react to this change in philosophy in a year’s time?
Written By: Eddie - Date published: 10:58 am, August 18th, 2010 - 31 comments
We’re in a depressingly familiar position under this Key government: We don’t know why one of our government’s ministers was forced to resign yesterday. It’s not good enough in this age of supposedly open and transparent government. The really scary thing this time is it appears the Prime Minister doesn’t know either.
Written By: Zetetic - Date published: 1:55 pm, August 17th, 2010 - 38 comments
Clad in traditional climate change denier headwear, John Boscawen today assumed the role of ACT Deputy Leader, vowing to use his new powers to launch a crusade against NIWA. Standing beside him, Rodney Hide told reporters “Don’t give me that look. At least he’s not David Garrett”
Written By: r0b - Date published: 7:19 am, August 17th, 2010 - 35 comments
Infighting within ACT seems to have come to a head, and pundits are predicting that Heather Roy will be sacked today, with John Boscawen to replace her as deputy. Will Roy split off and form a new party of the right? Fight ACT for that 1.5% of the vote?
Written By: Marty G - Date published: 3:03 pm, March 27th, 2010 - 78 comments
It’s getting nasty in the ACT party. Rodney Hide can’t last as leader. Heather Roy, Roger Douglas, and John Boscawen each have factions backing them to replace him. Disintegration is a real possibility. The consequence of ACT’s straying from it’s economically and socially liberal roots under Douglas and Prebble to reactionism under the nihilist Hide. If a collapse does take place, Key may have to call an early election.
Written By: Marty G - Date published: 2:13 pm, August 26th, 2009 - 104 comments
John Boscawen’s private members’ bill to amend s59 of the Crimes Act has been drawn from the ballot. Essentially it would take us back to square one in the smacking/child assault issue. The bill would allow parents and adults to assault* children for the purposes of correction as long as the level of the force […]
Written By: Guest post - Date published: 7:48 pm, May 25th, 2009 - 62 comments
Written By: notices and features - Date published: 3:30 pm, May 6th, 2009 - 45 comments
Bit of a group effort this one. John Boscawen MP – Boscawen is mad as a hatter and pretty damn ignorant. So he should appeal to the hard-right voters. In Parliament, he has argued against the Waterview tunnel and for a surface motorway. That’s not going to fly with the people of Mt Albert, especially […]
Written By: lprent - Date published: 2:31 pm, March 20th, 2009 - 61 comments
The preliminary results of a drill by the ANDRILL (Antarctic Geological Drilling) were published in the print edition of Nature this week. It has shown a history of the previous retreat and collapses of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS). The WAIS melt with its vast stores of solid water, and even more in the […]
The current rise of populism challenges the way we think about people’s relationship to the economy.We seem to be entering an era of populism, in which leadership in a democracy is based on preferences of the population which do not seem entirely rational nor serving their longer interests. ...
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