Posts Tagged ‘national’
National’s nanny state
Written By: - Date published: 1:40 pm, March 27th, 2008 - 73 comments
Seems to me we need some consensus on what a “Nanny State” actually is. Today the Nats have come out in opposition of some scholarships awarded for doctoral research by the Tertiary Education Commission – stuff like “children’s colour use and emotional wellbeing when drawing” being researched by Emily Crawford at Otago University. What could […]
Democracy in action
Written By: - Date published: 9:46 am, March 26th, 2008 - 6 comments
The Press reports that: National’s hunt for a candidate in the new Selwyn electorate continues to cause problems, with one unsuccessful applicant taking the party to court to protest against his rejection… Payne said yesterday he was paying the price for being “the whistleblower” over the selection concerns in Selwyn last year. “It’s unfair and […]
Creative pitch
Written By: - Date published: 9:31 am, March 26th, 2008 - 15 comments
With John Ansell now flat out with ACT and the Free Speech Coalition it suddenly stuck me that there might be an opening on the creative front with National. Putting my prejudices to one side, I’ve decided to pitch for their billboard contract.
Lies, damned lies, and statistics
Written By: - Date published: 1:26 pm, March 25th, 2008 - 32 comments
David Farrar appears to be throwing his weight in behind National Party’s “New Zealand Sucks” campaign with another misleading post on migration to Australia. Titled “The exodus grows”, DPF’s take on the most recent stats is that the rate at which people are “fleeing New Zealand” is accelerating. It’s perhaps disguised as one of David’s […]
Policy Summary: Labour v National
Written By: - Date published: 11:30 am, March 25th, 2008 - 24 comments
The Sunday-Star Times has an interesting list of the policies the election will be fought on and where the two major parties stand on them. Here’s the article in summary, see if you can spot the pattern: KiwiSaver Labour: Set up KiwiSaver, added government and employer contributions. Half a million Kiwis have now joined. National: No final policy yet. […]
National still evasive over KiwiSaver plans
Written By: - Date published: 9:43 am, March 19th, 2008 - 17 comments
You do have to wonder sometimes what it takes to get a straight answer out of a National party MP. Having recently given Brian Connell a bollocking for being evasive on camera, Bill English has now pulled out a performance of his own. He was far more polite of course, and at no stage made […]
They know their man
Written By: - Date published: 11:04 am, March 18th, 2008 - 6 comments
This week’s NBR editorial, titled “Smarten up, John Key”, frets that Key keeps showing himself to be a slippery, policy lightweight (can’t have people seeing that side of him until the election is safely won). They have three recommendations for how Key can smarten up: ‘First, is to keep his mouth shut when asked questions […]
National’s bad fortnight
Written By: - Date published: 2:03 pm, March 14th, 2008 - 33 comments
A bad week last week from John Key got worse this week as other National MPs joined Key in a game of drop the ball. Last week, Key didn’t know his party’s Waitangi and Maori seats policies, and was slippery on the Auckland Airport issue before finally coming down on the unpopular side of the […]
Journalists react to attack on media freedom
Written By: - Date published: 3:33 pm, March 13th, 2008 - 58 comments
Yesterday in Parliament, Winston Peters tabled a letter of protest from the Herald journalists’ chapel to APN chief executive Martin Simons. The letter related to Simons’ meeting with John Key to draft a ‘clarification’ for the Bay Report’s quote of Key saying he “would love to see wages drop.” The Bay Report was then forced […]
PSA on core public service
Written By: - Date published: 10:31 am, March 13th, 2008 - 19 comments
Richard Wagstaff from the PSA was interviewed by Sunrise on John Key’s plan to undermine the public service this morning. He notes Key’s tactical use of emotive language, questions his distinction between “front-line” and “bureaucratic” staff, suggests that the numbers used by National are possibly a little misleading and points out that our public service […]
Connell evasive over trip
Written By: - Date published: 9:24 am, March 13th, 2008 - 24 comments
Brian Connell won’t say whether he’s planning on taking his wife on the taxpayer-funded Speaker’s tour. In the clip below Faafoi asks Connell 18 times and still can’t get a straight answer as Connell gets increasingly abusive. — Leftie Infighting Alert!!— Steve Pierson: I back Connell on this, eccentric old bigot though he is. There […]
Key to scrap research fund
Written By: - Date published: 5:17 pm, March 12th, 2008 - 23 comments
From Radio NZ: National says it will scrap a major new research and development fund for the pastoral and food industries if it becomes the Government at this year’s election. Party leader John Key has criticised the fund as a “gimmick” and insists only the interest earned on the fund will be spent on research. […]
Dolla Dolla Bill, Y’all
Written By: - Date published: 5:17 pm, March 11th, 2008 - 14 comments
Days after saying ‘we’ve always said, we aren’t that worried about, um, whether the Crown needs to borrow a bit of money [for a] programme of tax cuts’ Bill English has accused Michael Cullen of ‘um, ah, borrowing for tax cuts’. What English’s researchers have discovered is that the amount of Government Bonds on issue […]
Yawn
Written By: - Date published: 4:47 pm, March 11th, 2008 - 11 comments
Well National’s finally got their line straight on the research fund and, despite me old mate Dancer’s prediction, they are not supporting it. It seems this one goes to AYB who picked their line perfectly. He said they’d claim the idea’s good but the model is flawed and then have cry about how it should […]
Expect National to back research funding boost
Written By: - Date published: 10:05 am, March 11th, 2008 - 18 comments
At lunchtime today it is expected that the government will announce a major funding boost to promote innovation in food science, agricultural research and production. So can we expect National to support the plan? At least Mr Key has been given the heads up to get an answer sorted out (unlike last week’s shakey non-answers […]
New Zealand, a great place to do business
Written By: - Date published: 12:36 pm, March 10th, 2008 - 42 comments
At 30%, the corporate tax is lower than or equal to most developed countries’. Our GST is only 12.5%, in most developed countries it is 15-25%. The economy has grown every year for a decade Inflation has averaged below 3% for over 20 years Workforce participation is 68%, very high by international standards. ACC provides […]
No, he meant “infrastructure”, he really, really did
Written By: - Date published: 3:47 pm, March 7th, 2008 - 27 comments
AYB’s confidence in English as a frontman for National may already have taken a knock as the second half of the dynamic duo has successfully managed his own John Key moment within hours of taking over the reins. When asked on NewstalkZB today whether National would borrow money to pay for tax cuts English managed […]
What we can’t tell you
Written By: - Date published: 11:58 am, March 7th, 2008 - 61 comments
There is more to the John Key “we would love to see wages drop” story than you have been able to read in the blogs or the mainstream media. We’ve been in contact with a large number of people who have been connected at various levels of this story as it has developed. Unfortunately, none […]
Hone Te NÄkahi
Written By: - Date published: 1:09 pm, March 6th, 2008 - 14 comments
The Maori Party has reacted angrily to Key’s unilateral decision that National would abolish the Maori seats some time around 2014. Newsroom reports (not online): ‘The Maori Party is threatening protest and strike action on a scale never seen before in New Zealand if any political party moves to abolish the Maori seats without consultation […]
Those were the days (all 20 of them)
Written By: - Date published: 2:02 pm, March 5th, 2008 - 17 comments
When I wrote to the MPs asking them for their thoughts on John Key’s “we would love to see wages drop” quote (results here), Nick Smith’s bio page reminded me of this little gem: Ah, the Brash-Smith dreamteam. Pity it couldn’t quite last the whole three weeks.
Key caught out
Written By: - Date published: 10:22 am, March 5th, 2008 - 22 comments
The government’s move to strengthen the Overseas Investment Act on Monday was met with predictable criticism from the ‘markets first, people second’ brigade. National Deputy Leader Bill ‘Privatise ‘em all’ English came out quickly on the side of big foreign money against New Zealand control of vital assets. But Bill’s supposed leader, John Key, didn’t […]
National: is there anything they won’t privatise?
Written By: - Date published: 4:03 pm, March 4th, 2008 - 17 comments
Burqa Bob wants to buy heartland rugby. In other news, Bill English plans to sell our sunshine hours to a Finnish consortium and Key has mooted flogging off our children’s laughter to the highest bidder. [Update: Kiwiblogblog doesn’t think it’s so funny]
Foreigners think NZ is great, why doesn’t National?
Written By: - Date published: 2:45 pm, March 4th, 2008 - 38 comments
One of National’s strategies is to constantly talk down New Zealand, arguing that other countries have it better, that to catch up we have to sell off our assets, cut our social services, cut wages, and work harder. The line is repeated in the media, most often in comparison with Australia. The thing is if […]
The Maori party and a deal with National
Written By: - Date published: 1:51 pm, March 4th, 2008 - 7 comments
We’ve all seen the polls with National leaping out in front – and over that magical 50% mark. Helen Clark may be saying the poll gap will close once National’s policies are known but there’s another more mundane reason to expect those heady highs to fall. Kiwis don’t like to see a party head toward […]
Key backs the underdog
Written By: - Date published: 1:39 pm, March 4th, 2008 - 25 comments
The latest Newsroom story [subscription only] about the Government’s move to protect Auckland International Airport from sale to the Canadian Pension Fund reports Labour is taking National to task on the issue of their support. Prime Minister Helen Clark is challenging National to state its position on strategic assets sales after the Government stepped in […]
They’ve got 18 better than him?
Written By: - Date published: 2:03 pm, February 29th, 2008 - 67 comments
National MP for Northland, John Carter, is ‘up in arms about a decision allowing inmates from Ngawha Prison to play in the Whangarei and Districts Rugby League competition.’ This kind of activity is an important part of rehabilitation. In case you are wondering, yes, this is the same John Carter who, in 1995, rang fellow […]
Behind National’s emigration wailing
Written By: - Date published: 12:09 pm, February 29th, 2008 - 28 comments
National likes to talk down New Zealand, to portray this great country as underperforming, to exaggerate our problems, and to cast our unique traits and values as barriers to ‘success’ (success is becoming a more homogenised off-shoot of American capitalism). A great way to further the message is wailing about people leaving for Australia – […]
How would Key make wages drop?
Written By: - Date published: 10:01 pm, February 28th, 2008 - 51 comments
Having read our coverage of John Key’s ‘we would love to see wages drop‘ line my brother asked ‘but how can a government make wages drop?’ The answer is obvious to those of us who know about this kind of stuff but my brother’s question, along with Colin Espiner’s naïve statement that ‘[a PM] has […]
What’s the future of Working for Families?
Written By: - Date published: 10:18 am, February 28th, 2008 - 13 comments
One consquence of the expectations around tax cuts is an examination of some of the policies already have in place – Working for Families for example. This was the topic of a recent article from Ruth Laugesen in the Sunday Star Times. “Coopers chairman John Shewan said that under Working for Families, many households effectively […]
Bill’s Wikipedia edits
Written By: - Date published: 2:03 pm, February 27th, 2008 - 39 comments
Again from a Parliamentary address, the following passage was deleted from Bill English’s Wikipedia entry in June last year: He married a Catholic GP, Mary, and they now have six children – five boys: Luke, Thomas, Rory, Bartholemew and Xavier; and one daughter, Maria. He is a devout Catholic himself, and upholds his churches opposition […]
National’s history of rewriting history
Written By: - Date published: 3:29 pm, February 26th, 2008 - 16 comments
You think they’d learn. Wikiscanner reports that someone in Parliament has been busy – busy expunging potentially embarassing facts about a variety of MPs. This one’s about Allan Peachey. You might remember Allan from such debacles as the Peachey/Rich bulk funding controversy and also the little number above that he’d evidently rather history forgot – […]
- Pupil-free days may be tricky for parents, but they are vital for teachers and schools
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ellen Larsen, Senior Lecturer, School of Education, University of Southern Queensland Iryna Tolmachova/Shutterstock Pupil-free or student-free days may seem like an extra holiday for students and an inconvenience for parents, who are juggling work and family. This week, some ...3 days ago - What are tariffs?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Scott French, Senior Lecturer in Economics, UNSW Sydney Engineer studio/Shutterstock This article is part of The Conversation’s “Business Basics” series where we ask experts to discuss key concepts in business, economics and finance. Thanks to the decisive victory of US ...3 days ago
- Trump’s tariffs are nothing new – NZ’s real problem is the failing free trade system itself
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jane Kelsey, Emeritus Professor of Law, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Getty Images Headlines following Donald Trump’s election victory focused largely on the influence of personalities, such as Elon Musk or Robert Kennedy junior, and single issues, such as how ...3 days ago
- How Rohingya activists are using art, food and storytelling as a form of resistance
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare M. Cooper, Lecturer in the School of Architecture, Design & Planning, University of Sydney Victor Caringal for MSF Rohingya activists, advocates and health organisations in Australia have been frustrated by the lack of support provided to displaced Rohingya people. This ...3 days ago
- Watch live: New Zealand vs Australia in the Trans-Tasman Scrabble Challenge
In an Antipodean first, the Bledisloe Cup of Scrabble is streaming live on YouTube all weekend. Here’s how to watch and everything else you need to know. What’s all this then? It’s Scrabble as you’ve never seen it before! Unless you already watch Scrabble online, in which case it’s Scrabble ...3 days ago - How the world reacted the to Treaty Principles Bill debate
The suspension of Parliament following a haka and the national hīkoi by thousands of people has garnered international attention. ...3 days ago - How the world reacted to the Treaty Principles Bill debate
The suspension of Parliament following a haka and the national hīkoi by thousands of people has garnered international attention. ...3 days ago
- Health NZ’s bid to remove Milo from staff rooms could have cost it $3m – union
The provision of hot drinks is enshrined in some health workers' contracts, "so if this was done as a cost-saving measure, it would have done anything but". ...3 days ago
- Treaty Principles Bill will greatly damage National’s relationship with Māori – former minister
This article first appeared at rnz.co.nz and is republished with permission.There is no doubt the Treaty Principles Bill will greatly damage National’s relationship with Māori, former Treaty Negotiations Minister Chris Finlayson says.The legislation passed its first reading on Wednesday afternoon, but not before extraordinary scenes of opposition that led to the Speaker suspending ...3 days ago - How the first reading of the Treaty Principles Bill played out
And why one former MP, explains Stewart Sowman-Lund for The Bulletin, says John Key would never have allowed this to happen. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. ...3 days ago
- Carol Hirschfeld could be in line for top TVNZ role
The big-cost out strategy at TVNZ could see former news presenter Carol Hirschfeld emerge as a front runner to head both the news and programming departments The post Carol Hirschfeld could be in line for top TVNZ role appeared first on Newsroom. ...3 days ago
- Live: David Seymour smiling as Treaty hīkoi continues south
The ACT leader remains defiant after his controversial bill passed its first reading, as a protest leaves Rotorua . ...3 days ago
- When home is where the work is, city design should fall in line
Opinion: The pandemic-induced WFH shift is altering the fabric of our built environments, offering unique opportunities to change how we work and live The post When home is where the work is, city design should fall in line appeared first on Newsroom. ...3 days ago
- Trump, tariffs and trade: What to expect from this year’s APEC summit
Analysis - Donald Trump will dominate talks at this year's APEC summit despite the US president-elect being nowhere near Peru. ...3 days ago
- Treaty Principles Bill will greatly damage National’s relationship with Māori – former ...
National's former Treaty negotiations minister says some MPs are more concerned about their careers than the party's history and traditions. ...3 days ago
- Public servants ‘exhausted’ after job cuts, more redundancies to come
Thousands of jobs have been slashed from the public service, leaving those still with jobs struggling to keep up the same workload. ...3 days ago
- All 14 malls in Christchurch ranked from worst to best
To celebrate Christchuch Anniversary Day, Joseph Harper ranks every mall in the ‘garden city’. This is the first in the Malls of New Zealand series, where we rank the malls in major centres. Next week: Auckland. When I was growing up in pre-quake Ōtautahi, people used to say that the ...3 days ago
- The climate and human rights crises are indelibly intertwined
At the Cop29 climate conference, the host country’s president called oil a ‘gift of god’. But for many people all over the world, it is in fact a curse. Maria Armoudian, a senior lecturer in politics and international relations, explains. In the first week of the United Nations international climate ...3 days ago
- This week’s bestselling books – November 15
FICTION1 The Songbirds of Florence by Olivia Spooner (Hachette, $37.99)A free copy of the author’s latest historical novel – set in 1942, in Egypt, where Kiwi women are sent to provide respite to weary soldiers returning from the front line – was up for grabs in last week’s giveaway contest. Readers were asked to say ...3 days ago
- Havana’s clean sweep in memory of dad
As Havana Hopman walked off the gymnastics floor, her ribbon trailing behind her, she turned her tear-filled eyes to the roof and whispered: ‘Thank you’.It was the final day of the national gymnastics championships in Palmerston North, and for Hopman – New Zealand’s top rhythmic gymnast for the past four ...3 days ago
- Pacific staring down ‘twin storms’ of debt and climate disaster
A ‘vicious cycle’ sees Pacific nations take on debt to recover from disasters, underinvest in resilience and suffer more damage as a result The post Pacific staring down ‘twin storms’ of debt and climate disaster appeared first on Newsroom. ...3 days ago
- Daily crossword, Friday 15 November
The post Daily crossword, Friday 15 November appeared first on Newsroom. ...3 days ago
- Rocketlab’s Māhia launches linked to Israeli military intelligence
Space Minister Judith Collins is urged to revoke or decline Rocketlab applications with possible links to the war in Gaza The post Rocketlab’s Māhia launches linked to Israeli military intelligence appeared first on Newsroom. ...3 days ago
- Peru combats crime as world leaders arrive
While world leaders prepare to talk about lofty trade issues, Peruvians are more concerned about crime The post Peru combats crime as world leaders arrive appeared first on Newsroom. ...3 days ago
- Changes are on the way for NZ Post, and posties aren’t happy
Fewer deliveries every week, a reduced number of postal outlets, and no longer having mail deliveries to letterboxes at front gates are just some of the proposed changes for New Zealand Post.This would mean posties could eventually stop delivering mail to individual letterboxes and instead leave mail in cluster or ...3 days ago
- A House divided, a leader nowhere in sight
Analysis: When David Seymour started talking about the democratisation of Te Tiriti he seemed sure the conversation wouldn’t divide the nation.“I wouldn’t underestimate people’s ability to engage in a high-quality conversation,” Seymour told Newsroom back in August.On Thursday, during the first reading of his Treaty Principles Bill, the division was ...3 days ago
- Newsroom daily quiz, Friday 15 November
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A,DIV,A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp');Got a good quiz question? Send Newsroom your questions. .wp-block-newspack-blocks-homepage-articles article .entry-title { font-size: 1.2em; } .wp-block-newspack-blocks-homepage-articles .entry-meta { display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; align-items: center; margin-top: 0.5em; } .wp-block-newspack-blocks-homepage-articles article .entry-meta { font-size: 0.8em; } .wp-block-newspack-blocks-homepage-articles article .avatar { height: 25px; width: ...3 days ago
- NZ to restart oil and gas exploration one month after COP
While New Zealand diplomats at the COP29 climate summit are pushing for a global phase-out of fossil fuels, legislators at home plan to repeal the 2018 ban on new offshore oil and gas drilling within a month of the conference’s end.A spokesperson for Resources Minister Shane Jones confirmed the legislation, ...3 days ago
- Government aims to pass political donation and spending caps within a fortnight after in-principle d...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Albanese government aims to rush through legislation within a fortnight for political donation and spending caps, after in-principle support from the opposition. The new regime, to be unveiled by Special Minister of State ...3 days ago
- Grattan on Friday: Labor will ask voters ‘who will make you better or worse off in next three year...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The government is standing by Kevin Rudd, albeit with gritted teeth, in the face of calls for him to be replaced as Australia’s ambassador to Washington. But the row is an unhelpful and potentially damaging ...3 days ago
- NZ’s Hīkoi challenging controversial draft bill ‘redefines activism’, says Herald
Pacific Media Watch As thousands take to the streets this week to “honour” the country’s 1840 Treaty of Waitangi, the largest daily newspaper New Zealand Herald says the massive event is “redefining activism”. The Hīkoi mō te Tiriti has been underway since Sunday, with thousands of New Zealanders from all ...4 days ago
- Collins and Rocket Lab challenged over satellites linked to Israeli war crimes
Asia Pacific Report The Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa (PSNA) has written to the Minister for Space Judith Collins and Rocket Lab CEO Peter Beck to warn that satellites being launched from the Māhia Peninsula are “highly likely” to conduct surveillance for Israel. And also to assist in the commission of ...4 days ago
- OzAsia festival 2024: a celebration of Asian culture and art – and what it means to be Asian-Austr...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tets Kimura, Adjunct Lecturer, Creative Arts, Flinders University Xplorer Media/Adelaide Festival Centre The well-documented history of Asian mass migration to modern Australia dates from the gold rush era in the mid-19th century. With a history that is longer a century and ...4 days ago
- Major parties making gains in TPU-Curia poll
The major parties have gained - with National regaining 3.9 points - at the expense of the minor parties. ...4 days ago
- NZ’s Treaty Principles Bill passes first reading after Māori MP evicted over haka
RNZ News New Zealand’s controversial Treaty Principles Bill passed its first reading in Parliament today and will now go to the Justice Committee for consideration as the national Hīkoi continued its journey to the capital. Opposition Te Pati Māori’s Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke was suspended from the House following a haka. Maipi-Clarke ...4 days ago
- Watch: Labour’s Willie Jackson ejected from house for calling David Seymour a liar during Trea...
Labour's Māori Development spokesperson was the first to be ejected from the House after calling David Seymour a "liar" - breaking Parliament's rules. ...4 days ago
- There is reliable evidence social media harms young people – debates about it are a misdirection
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Danielle Einstein, Adjunct Fellow, School of Psychological Sciences, Macquarie University Tanya Gorelova/Pexels The Australian government is developing legislation that will ban children under 16 from social media. There has been a huge public debate about whether there is sufficient direct evidence ...4 days ago
- Politics with Michelle Grattan: shadow communications minister David Coleman says misinformation leg...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The government has embarked on a raft of new online safety measures aimed at protecting Australians from the excesses of misinformation and social harm online. However, these policies have been met with backlash. Experts ...4 days ago
- ASIC’s lawsuit against Cbus has put the big super funds on notice
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Natalie Peng, Lecturer in Accounting, The University of Queensland Yuri A/Shutterstock Does your superannuation fund also provide you with insurance? Many of us are automatically enrolled without even realising. Now, the way super funds handle such claims has been thrust into ...4 days ago
- Live: The Treaty Principles Bill has passed its first reading
Te Pāti Māori's Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke was suspended from the house for interrupting the vote on the Treaty Principles Bill's first reading with a haka. ...4 days ago
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