Posts Tagged ‘john key’
Benefit numbers continue to climb
Written By: - Date published: 6:30 am, January 20th, 2011 - 43 comments
Remember back when Labour was in power and the Right had this myth that dole numbers had only dropped because Labour had moved people to other benefits? It wasn’t true but that didn’t stop John Key saying it during one of the 2008 debates as he promised to get more people into work. Now, 2 years later, 83,879 more Kiwis are on benefits.
Votes before lives for Key
Written By: - Date published: 5:47 pm, January 2nd, 2011 - 33 comments
OIA papers show Key blocked lowering the drink-drive level fearing an anti-‘PC’ backlash. Officials warned “Drivers with a blood-alcohol content of [80mg], who are legally entitled to drive, are significantly impaired”. But Key’s office was worried about votes. So Joyce kicked for touch – commissioned 2 years of research. While we wait, more lives are lost.
Nats & Jackson played us for fools
Written By: - Date published: 8:09 am, December 21st, 2010 - 130 comments
The Herald has used the OIA to get hold of emails Peter Jackson sent Gerry Brownlee during the Hobbit shakedown. They show that the Actors’ Equity blacklisting was not a threat to the film staying here – yet Jackson and Brownlee told us it was to justify handing Warners $34 million and rushing through an anti-worker law.
Rortbuster not finished with Wong
Written By: - Date published: 10:21 am, December 15th, 2010 - 35 comments
Rortbuster Pete Hodgson unveiled yet more information about Pansy and Sammy Wong’s business activities in China on the taxpayer dime in Parliament yesterday. It’s damning material. The Auditor-General had decided not to investigate but there’s every chance she will now or that the Police will.
Waiting on Wong to do right
Written By: - Date published: 6:12 am, November 23rd, 2010 - 67 comments
Why are we waiting for Pansy Wong to resign from Parliament for her corrupt use of her MP’s perks or, failing that, for the Nats to evict her? The theory is the Nats want to avoid a by-election over summer. As Trevor Mallard puts it – Key wants to have his Hawaii holiday in peace. But the NBR’s Matt Nippert has other reasons for Wong’s soft treatment.
Where’s the White House invite, John?
Written By: - Date published: 6:09 am, November 5th, 2010 - 38 comments
John Key proved one thing this week. When it comes to international affairs, he’s full of s**t. Despite all his claims about being best buds with Barack Obama, he didn’t even get an invite to meet him from top U.S. diplomat Hillary Clinton. He probably didn’t help future chances either by referring to Hillary as “President Clinton”. You sure are a class act John.
Key to get White House invite?
Written By: - Date published: 6:30 am, November 1st, 2010 - 45 comments
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is on her way to New Zealand this week, bringing the customary promises of good will and better relations between our two countries.
The big question is however: Will Clinton be bringing the overdue White House invite for our Prime Minister? John Key has claimed after all he and Obama are best pals… and he can pick up the phone anytime. Now’s the test.
A rushed law, a bad law
Written By: - Date published: 5:11 pm, October 29th, 2010 - 56 comments
The Hobbit Enabling Act is meant to do is say ‘you’re an employee if you are called an employee in your contract, if not, you’re a contractor’. But it doesn’t say that and it doesn’t override the Bryson case that caused the ‘uncertainty’ Warners supposedly feared. Now, nobody knows what the law actually is. Well-founded disagreements will mean court cases.
Tax breaks and the Hobbit
Written By: - Date published: 7:06 pm, October 26th, 2010 - 96 comments
From Stuff: A meeting between Warner Brothers and senior government ministers has ended, with studio executives asking for larger incentives to keep The Hobbit movies in NZ. The two-hour meeting, which included New Line Cinema boss Toby Emmerich, ended with no resolution to the Hobbit standoff…
Some clarity on the Hobbit dispute
Written By: - Date published: 8:58 pm, October 23rd, 2010 - 105 comments
After days of trying to read the media and rumour mill tea-leaves on the Hobbit it was time to do some fact checking.
It turns out this has been a hard lesson in how the international film industry works.
Government manoeuvres on the Hobbit
Written By: - Date published: 12:37 pm, October 23rd, 2010 - 84 comments
Fran O’Sullivan reckons the Government will offer tax-breaks to keep the Hobbit in NZ.
But it also looks like they’ll try to keep claim it’s about the (settled) dispute.
If that’s the case there’s some truly gymnastic spin to look forward to this week.
Latest Roy Morgan poll
Written By: - Date published: 8:17 pm, October 13th, 2010 - 103 comments
Nat 49.5%, Lab 36.5%, Gre 8%, NZF 2.5%, MAO 2.5% ACT 0.5%
Highest Labour vote since Helen Clark was PM. Lowest ACT vote in many many years. Key’s still holding the Nats up high.
Caption competition
Written By: - Date published: 4:44 pm, October 11th, 2010 - 37 comments
Be captivating…
Analysing Henry’s ‘apology’, TVNZ & Key’s mishandling
Written By: - Date published: 2:38 pm, October 6th, 2010 - 56 comments
We’ve had a lot of coverage of the issue of TVNZ’s bigoted host but I want to chip in with a few points: Paul Henry’s ‘apology’ is in fact a calculated dog whistle to bigots, the blame for Henry goes to a deeper rot in TVNZ, and we have seen prove positive of John Key’s complete inability to lead and stand up for what’s right.
A couple of points about the Hobbit dispute
Written By: - Date published: 9:26 pm, October 4th, 2010 - 62 comments
Actors Equity have the Aussie actors’ minimum standards up on their site and they look pretty minimal.
So what’s all the fuss about and why is John Key suddenly interested in getting involved in an industrial dispute?
After all he’s previously claimed it’s “not appropriate” for the government to intervene in other disputes.
Quick thoughts on Henry’s “apology”
Written By: - Date published: 6:46 pm, October 4th, 2010 - 30 comments
So he’s apologised to the Governor General personally but not to the hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders who he has described as not looking like New Zealanders? WTF does it matter whether or not he’s a royalist? Did he make some kind of anti-royal comment I missed? Is he actually apologising for what he […]
Key and Shirtcliffe conspire against MMP
Written By: - Date published: 1:57 pm, September 26th, 2010 - 62 comments
Leaked notes from a meeting between Peter Shirtcliffe and Wayne Eagleson have revealed backroom dealings to kill off MMP.
We shouldn’t be surprised that the party of big business and the big-business-backed anti-MMP lobby would be colluding.
After all, it’s in all of their interests to take power from the voters and put it back in the hands of the elite.
The next ACT
Written By: - 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.
Key’s clumsy opportunism
Written By: - Date published: 7:03 am, September 22nd, 2010 - 41 comments
John Key has tried to use the ACT fiasco to take a clumsy swing at MMP.
I guess he reckons it’s just too hard to rip voters off when you have to chase a party vote.
National’s dodgy tax campaign
Written By: - Date published: 8:31 pm, September 20th, 2010 - 56 comments
According to the ODT government MP’s are going to be travelling around the country trying to convince New Zealanders that their plan to cut taxes for the rich isn’t actually a plan to cut taxes for the rich at all.
Some thoughts on ACT
Written By: - 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?
John Armstrong on the politics of ChCh’s quake
Written By: - Date published: 11:55 am, September 8th, 2010 - 14 comments
John Armstrong provides an insightful analysis of the politics around the aftermath of Christchurch’s earthquake, saying “The chaos and destruction wreaked on Christchurch by Saturday’s earthquake leaves no room for playing party politics….The politicians are already playing politics, however, though not too flagrantly. Saying you are not going to play politics – as Goff effectively did – is itself a political statement. As was John Key’s decision to cancel his trip to Britain and France.”
Youz iz racists. Nah, only jokez!
Written By: - Date published: 4:20 pm, September 5th, 2010 - 30 comments
John Key says Maurice Williamson was just joking when he called us racists for not wanting to sell more of our country into foreign ownership.
Does he really expect us to believe that? Why compound an insult with a lie?
And since when would it be OK for Williamson to jokingly call us racists?
The many bail out the few
Written By: - Date published: 7:30 pm, August 31st, 2010 - 52 comments
Funny how quickly John Key and Bill English found that spare $1.7bn for wealthy investors after all that talk about how we should be tightening our belts.
It’s shows exactly where their priorities are.
Diconnected Key
Written By: - Date published: 7:28 am, August 31st, 2010 - 36 comments
According to John Key, teachers who want to maintain reasonably class sizes and free flu vaccines are disconnected from the real world. That would be the real world of hanging out with the Queen and spending $1.5bn on finance companies I guess. What a dick.
Rodney Hide in control of Key Government policy
Written By: - Date published: 9:42 am, August 27th, 2010 - 62 comments
According to OIA papers released to the NZ Herald, Key’s plan to extend the 90 day “fire at will” law to all businesses is an ACT party takeover of government policy.
Minister of Labour Kate Wilkinson recommended against the extent of the plan. She was overruled by Cabinet in response to ACT threats. As Trevor Mallard said, if Key had any balls he would’ve stuck to his Minister’s advice.
ACT’s demise bad news for neo-liberals
Written By: - Date published: 6:33 am, August 20th, 2010 - 37 comments
No wonder Winston Peters is smiling. His personal vendetta with Hide must be at on the forefront of his mind as he watches his nemesis sink.
But what does ACT’s impending demise actually mean for other parties? It’s not good news for National.
Douglas adds to Key’s ACT headache
Written By: - Date published: 4:07 pm, August 19th, 2010 - 34 comments
ACT’s meltdown continues, with comments from ACT founder and current MP Sir Roger Douglas illustrating that all is not well in the caucus. According to Stuff, Sir Roger Douglas is saying he is not sure he will stand at the next election. He also said the party had to show it was stable. “I don’t […]
Peters vs Key
Written By: - Date published: 8:27 pm, August 18th, 2010 - 53 comments
TV3 is reporting Winston Peters will standing at the next election… against John Key in Helensville. Those are candidate meetings I for one wouldn’t want to miss!
Nat’s lacking serious economic plan
Written By: - Date published: 8:47 am, August 14th, 2010 - 55 comments
In his ‘Key Notes’ this week, John Key claims that sending a handful of the business elite overseas to get MBAs will boost the economy. Seriously, 350,000 jobless Kiwis and the plan Key is bragging about is a million dollars worth of subsidies for the business elite as the solution to our woes? What a sick joke this government is. And it’s being played by the rich on the rest of us.
Unemployment rises to 6.8%
Written By: - Date published: 1:00 pm, August 5th, 2010 - 100 comments
Statistics NZ has just released the Household Labour Force Survey for June 2010 and it’s grim reading, with an astonishing increase in the unemployment rate from 6.0% to 6.8%.
Maori unemployment is now up to 16.4%, Pacific unemployment is at 14.1% and there’s been a 70% increase in long-term unemployment to 37,600.
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