The benefits of a Labour led Government

Written By: - Date published: 12:18 pm, April 1st, 2019 - 67 comments
Categories: class war, cost of living, employment, grant robertson, jobs, Living Wage, minimum wage, national, same old national, Simon Bridges, Unions, wages, workers' rights - Tags:

Today increases to the minimum wage and superannuation come into being.  Yesterday Radio New Zealand said this:

Increases in the minimum wage and superannuation kick in tomorrow, along with several measures aimed to help businesses.

Finance Minister Grant Robertson said the April 1 changes are intended to grow the economy and improve the wellbeing of New Zealanders.

Among the measures is the largest ever rise in the minimum wage, which increases by $1.20 to $17.70 an hour.

Superannuation and veterans’ pensions will increase by 2.6 percent.

A research and development incentive will provide a 15 percent tax credit to businesses that spend more than $50,000 on research and development from tomorrow.

ACC levies will also fall tomorrow.

You would think that everyone would celebrate the Government acting to improve the plight of those less fortunate in our society.  But not everyone.

From Television New Zealand:

National Party leader Simon Bridges has again spoken out against the minimum wage increase which comes into effect today, calling it “too far, too fast”.

The pay boost, from $16.50 to $17.70, will see around 200,000 Kiwis benefit.

Mr Bridges told TVNZ1’s Breakfast this morning that the Government “should increase the minimum wage every single year”, but added the $1.20 rise will add undue stress to many of the small businesses which are “doing it tough”.

“It’s an accumulative effect, right? This is why the economy is weakening.

It’s not just capital gains tax, it’s not just minimum wage, it’s doing away with the 90-day trial, it’s unionizing the workforce – it’s all of these things which means they don’t have a certainty and confidence,” he said. 

Mr Bridges added that society made the decision for taxpayers to subsidise low-paid workers through welfare.

“The truth is, as a society, we made that decision, you know?

If you’re not a 17-year-old on the minimum wage, but if you’re a mum or a dad and you’ve got one, two, three children and you’ve got different circumstances, you will be getting supplements for your home rentals, you will be getting Working for Families.

So as a society, [we’ve] decided that that’s the right thing to do.

“We already – through Working for Families, through rental supplements and the like – are supporting them,” he concluded. “But to have that small business doing it? Look, they just can’t.”

It is interesting that Bridges has essentially conceded that the current system is not working, that businesses survive only because the Government subsidises wages.  The last time I looked businesses such as McDonalds, Starbucks and Burger King were doing pretty well mainly because their wages bill was so low.

And so many wealthy institutions whose cleaning bills are low thanks to low levels of pay are also enjoying something at someone else’s cost.

Well done to the Government for doing this.  Can someone on the right explain how they would improve things?

67 comments on “The benefits of a Labour led Government ”

  1. The Chairman 1

    Nothing for the sick and unemployed?

    • A 1.1

      Benefits aren’t levelly applied. Meaning there can be differences in surpluses of several hundred (assumes 2 x boarders, mortgage fully paid and core benefit payment received without penalty for income) vs deficits of 100+ (TAS, private rental, high health costs and unable to work or have a boarder).

      Nobody in the decade since TAS was introduced cared enough to change things for sick and disabled and I wouldn’t expect more now. Don’t need a drug, alcohol, or gambling problem to not be able to meet your expenses, all you need do is end up on the losing end of our welfare system.

    • Pat 1.2

      am not sure…is that the case?

      • The Chairman 1.2.1

        Seems not. Hat tip, te reo putake

        • Pat 1.2.1.1

          have seen his link…it would appear benefits have increased by less than 2%…am guessing thats in line with inflation and there is no independent increase nor increase in relation to minimum wage

          • The Chairman 1.2.1.1.1

            Indeed, Pat. Which would explain why there has been little said of it. It’s pittance, thus they should still be ashamed.

            Benefits should be fixed to wages as pensions are.

            • Pat 1.2.1.1.1.1

              I think that it is a reflection of the historical position with regard to the ‘deserving poor’….or the incentive to work…even if its not a realistic option

              • The Chairman

                The incentive to work doesn’t really apply to the sick and disable that are unable too. Thus, as they are no longer productive, I guess they must fall into the category of Labour’s “deserving poor”

                The sick and disable tend to be solely or largely dependent on benefits. And usually for a far longer term. For some, it can be life long. Thus, without decent increases in benefits they are distend to long periods (and in some cases a life time) of poverty.

                Yet, a number of people and the Government seem to be fine with that. Go figure?

                • Pat

                  if unable to work then no amount of ‘incentive’ will change that…there may be a place for incentive for those capable of work but to consign those unable to effective poverty would appear to me to be contrary to their stated ideals….that is difficult to reconcile

  2. Took them bloody long enough…

    And yeah – what about the sick and unemployed?

    Huh ?

    • The Chairman 2.1

      Indeed, WK

      Labour should be ashamed.

      Where are the pay increases for workers who become sick or unemployed, Jacinda?

      • All benefit rates went up this morning, lads, including those for the sick and the unemployed. Gutting for your argument that Labour are bastards, I know, but welcome news for many.

        Old and new rates here: http://www.legislation.govt.nz/regulation/public/2019/0027/latest/whole.html

        I’d agree the rates are too low overall, but at least this Government is trying to address the wider issues; a theme that will be picked up in the next budget, I imagine.

        • Kay 2.1.1.1

          And correspondingly, all those of us receiving TAS will see that reduced (due to the fact our income has technically increased) thus cancelling out any pittance of an increase. Often we find the TAS cut leaves us with even less money than before the increase. Which is why these annual ‘cost of living’ increases are better known as April fools jokes.

          • te reo putake 2.1.1.1.1

            Hi, Kay. Can you tell me a bit more about TAS eligibility? I’m supporting someone at WINZ in a couple of days. Transitting off ACC on to sickness benefit, though an appeal is in on the decline of ACC cover. TAS sounds like it might help.

        • Stuart Munro. 2.1.1.2

          Well, I’d like to see more, but good on them.

        • Pat 2.1.1.3

          The increases are negligible…if minimum wage has increased by over 7% why havnt benefits?

          • Chris 2.1.1.3.1

            Because the legislation pins annual increases to the CPI. TRP thinks the increases reflect Labour looking after beneficiaries. I suppose that’s true in a sense, for example, if you think Labour should get a pat on the back for not repealing the section of the Act that says the increases have to happen. Perhaps the poor owe Labour a big thank you for not doing that.

        • Chris 2.1.1.4

          “I’d agree the rates are too low overall, but at least this Government is trying to address the wider issues; a theme that will be picked up in the next budget, I imagine.”

          The Social Security Act requires benefit rates to be increased every year, so it’s not a matter of this government trying to address the wider issues at all – the previous National government had to do it, too, so don’t try to claim that Labour’s going out of its way to do anything extra for beneficiaries because they’re not.

          And as far as Labour looking at addressing benefit issues at the next budget, well, that’s what Labour’s been saying since the benefit cuts in 1991, and it’s done absolutely nothing. People have given up waiting for Labour to do anything meaningful for beneficiaries. All it’s done is made things worse. Nobody believes that shit anymore about Labour wanting to sort the benefit system out. “Wait til after the election…”, “it’s going to be in the next budget…”, “we’re working on the policy now but we have to get it right…” It’s become a total joke.

      • Chris 2.1.2

        Increasing benefit levels is not on Labour’s radar. Labour are opposed to doing that. At the end of last year Labour passed a whole brand new Social Security Act. It was originally a National government Bill but Labour adopted it as its own and passed it almost in its entirety. It was a very nasty manouvre on National’s part which suited Labour down to the ground because it was consistent with its anti-social security track record going back to 1999. While it’s been Labour’s policy to talk about fixing our social security system for decades now, it certainly isn’t part of its policy to do it.

  3. The Chairman 3

    “National Party leader Simon Bridges has again spoken out against the minimum wage increase which comes into effect today, calling it “too far, too fast”.

    It’s actually the opposite. Too little too late. How quick Bridges forgets the growing numbers queuing for food parcels.

    And as for the small struggling businesses Bridges refers, they will potentially do better when many more workers have extra cash to spend.

  4. Ad 4

    Well done you beat me to it.

    More in Budget in 6 weeks.

  5. WeTheBleeple 5

    I suspect some business owners have no grasp of trickle-round theory.

    With trickle round, the money goes to the bottom namely workers, and this gets spent on basic goods and services which businesses provide. The business gets paid, the workers get paid. Simple. Money circulates through and strengthens the local economy (till it hits a corporate siphon).

    With trickle down, the money goes to champagne and boats for management for a jolly good job jolly well done. The workers sit with tin cups waiting for management to piss out the window. Trickling down are jobs for wiping up piss, wiping down yachts, and wiping chins.

    • indiana 5.1

      How well does this theory work if businesses increase the cost of their product inline with the increase in wages paid to their employees? And of course we all know that the price of commodities do not increase equally with the increase in wages.

      • WeTheBleeple 5.1.1

        It is up to each business how they respond. In the big picture 200K people, many of who work just as hard (and often harder) than managers, will be better off. And we’re not talking take a trip abroad better off, we’re talking feeding the kids, heating the house, getting to work.

        I understand some industries rely heavily on the cheapest labor they can get. The claim is that competition and overheads force their hand to operate like this. I encourage such industries to make a clear financial case for themselves instead of noise and veiled threats of the sky falling in local newspapers.

        It might be that some industries do require propping up, let the accountants account for them. If their value to society is such they are worth propping up, state their case.

        On the local money go round

        200 000 people times $1.20 an hour times 40 hours

        9 600 000 per week added to the local economy.

        Accommodation supplement costs 30M per week to landlords.

        Some people have had it both ways for far too long. Those who endure genuine hardship should be looked after. Business and workers.

      • KJT 5.1.2

        Capitalism says, that businesses which cannot cover their true costs, should be allowed to fail, and make way for businesses that use their resources more efficiently.

        One of the notable things about “Capitalists” is the belief in capitalism goes down the drain, and the hand goes out, for “socialist” subsidies’, when it is they who are failing.

        Supply and demand dictates the price of most goods, rather than the marginal cost of supply. Some, must haves, can get away with cost plus pricing, like electricity. Most commodities have a market limit on the price level.

    • Lucy 5.3

      Whilst I dislike trickle down your theory of trickle round doesn’t work either. In all the stories from Victorian times the main thing was that if you were poor you bought food each day as 1) there was no way to preserve food and 2) you had to pay cash. But this is the most expensive way to buy things so the poor in many instances paid more than the wealthy for their food bill due to the markups put on purchasing small quantities (sounds like the current debate about shopping trucks). Trickle round also means that the poor still spend all their income, as their cars are older and need more servicing, their homes are rentals and the rents go up each year, they eat more poorly so they need to go to the dentist more, they are more vulnerable to sickness as the food choices are more limited. Any system that relies on a trickle approach will fail because to work demand must be higher than supply

      • WeTheBleeple 5.3.1

        If you took my original post seriously that’s your issue there were more than enough sign posts to suggest it was satirical.

        Thanks for the lecture about how the poor spend all to pay their bills. I feel considerably enlightened. That btw was also sarcasm.

  6. mosa 6

    Simon Bridges is irrelevant like his opinions on anything.
    They had nine years and accomplished zilch.
    Unionizing the workforce ? Yeah right.

    • my view 6.1

      Simon might be irrelevant but they aren’t. They might not be socially minded but they left the country financially sound. That’s the foundation that is letting this Government try out its expensive policies. The last nine years is a cheap shot when we all know that a lot natural and global problems had to be delt with in that time.

      • WeTheBleeple 6.1.1

        Delusional. Evidence of the financially sound books left by National? Just blathering, if you say it is so doesn’t make it true – at all!

        The books with broken hospitals, broken people, welfare system, housing, health, education…

        ‘They might not be socially minded’

        They are not society minded. Go count your shares or something else you are capable of comprehending.

  7. JO 7

    Is it a bit late for someone on the right to think of something to do about a situation they have planned, promulgated, put into place, pressured people to accept, punished others for resisting, put at the top of their to-do list at every election since the early 1990s and before (Bold Sir John merely put knobs on top), and pugnaciously promoted with promises of progress and prosperity?

    Still, there’s always hope that goodwill and good minds on all ‘sides’ will come up with some useful ideas. Like, maybe, expecting businesses to think of their staff not as costs to control but assets worth investing in?

  8. A 8

    This will sound harsh but what we need are corresponding cuts in Accommodation Supplement as part of the first phase in weening our landlords off welfare dependency.

    The AS has ruined this country by pushing up rents at the bottom and causing a flow on effect. It was only ever meant to give low income earners a choice between State and private rentals, not supply 60% of all rental properties with gov’t money.

    • Rosemary McDonald 8.1

      I’d be getting rid of the AS totally. Put in place a wage, rent and price freeze literally overnight with no prior warning, and simultaneously announce the immediate cancellation of the AS.

      Government should have funds to hand to purchase acceptable properties at the resulting mortgagee sales.

      Kill a whole lot of birds….

      • Chris 8.1.1

        The maximum AS can be over three quarters of a person’s basic benefit rate. Axing that amount of someone’s income would be pretty horrific.

    • What 60% of Landlords getting Rent Subsidies from Central Government you are fucking joking, what a crooked set up that is, and most of the money flowing over to China ?

  9. “We already – through Working for Families, through rental supplements and the like – are supporting them,” he concluded. “But to have that small business doing it? Look, they just can’t.”

    Interesting – Simon Bridges just declared capitalism to be unworkable in NZ. Although, based on his previous word salads, you have to assume he doesn’t actually know that’s what he said.

  10. Tiger Mountain 10

    Good, well needed, incremental reforms, which only Nashnull worshippers could fault, so I will fault something else–the “Neo Liberal Consensus” that National and Labour predominantly, and NZ First and Greens secondarily, have subscribed to for almost 30 years now–Reserve Bank Act, SOEs, State Sector Act, essentially free in and outflow of capital and repatriated profits…

    if the Coalition Govt. is able to win a second term, in what ever form it may reemerge following the 2020 election, then there are other substantial reforms needed, many of which could be done right now with less blow back than CGT seems to have attracted

    …such as; genuinely renounce Rogernomics/Ruthanasia, cleanse the top ranks of the SSC, and public sector top echelons, of hundreds of “enemies within”–monetarist hard men masquerading as civil servants, reform punitive WINZ/MSD or preferably retire it totally and replace with GMI/UBI, return Electricity generation and supply to full public ownership, with some compensation over time, return the Marsden Refinery to full public ownership, particularly now that it is looking greener energy generation also, etc. etc.–“for the many not the few” has to be the tack for a second term Jacinda lead Govt.

  11. cleangreen 11

    Labour needs to get transport sorted out here as trucks are not the way as we showed here.

    I wrote to the minister of transport asking to meet him in his office in wellington last month and while parliament was off.

    We just got another note back saying ‘he was to busy’???????

    He is to busy while not at parliament? What the hell was he busy doing??

    GGGRRRRR.

    He needs to get big items done before 2020 to look credible.

    TO; Phil Twyford
    Minister of Transport.
    31st March 2019.

    Subject; Article below entitled; “The Hidden Trucking Industry Subsidy”

    This US based article shows we ‘public’ give an exorbitant unfair amount of subsidy to the trucking industry.

    Minister please drive around regional NZ and just see the impacts of 50+ tonne trucks destruction of our “soft roads” that do not even have an adequate under base to carry the 50+ tonne laden weight trucks, as they need a ‘reinforced concrete base’ as US/Canadian and EU roads have installed under their truck routes.

    Quote;
    Freight trucks cause 99% of wear-and-tear on US roads, but only pay for 35% of the maintenance. This $60B subsidy causes extra congestion and pollution, and taxpayers pay the bill.

    SO; ‘WE GIVE ‘PUBLIC’ SUBSIDY TO TRUCKS WHY NOT RAIL’?

    We request ‘public’ money for roading also be given to restoring our public owned regional rail.

    Dear Minister of Transport;

    Since this document came out we know that the public is massively funding road repairs for private trucking companies so now we need to level the playing field for rail as it is a public owned entity owned by us taxpayers so we now desperately need at least an equal 50% contribution of the ‘public road funding’ be given to rail to restore the regional rail services around NZ.

    Your response to this letter is very welcome.

    • I drove from Rotorua to Palmerston North this morning and have never seen so many big rigs on the road, including the narrow, winding Vinegar Hill road between Feilding and SH1. South of Taupo the traffic actually stopped because big rig one couldn’t get his fat arse onto a bridge while fatarse big rig two was crossing it. Stop subsidising these fucks – what you subsidise, you get more of.

      • cleangreen 11.1.1

        Yes Psycho Milt.

        We on the East Coast roads from Napier to Tauranga called ‘Highway two’ is stuffed and falling apart as trucks are literally pulling the road apart from side to side now, and potholes are every 5o yards apart from each other now.

        My vehicle’s steering has been damaged so many times, now I pay to fix the steering every three months on average, or replace a broken engine mount.

        This is worse than just being a ‘bad joke’ it’s now sop dangerous to drive on these roads now.

        Get rail going as it was before.

        http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU1904/S00008/kiwirail-to-boost-log-capacity-out-of-wairarapa.htm

        KiwiRail to boost log capacity out of Wairarapa
        BusinessDesk Monday, 1 April 2019, 10:33 am
        Article: BusinessDesk

        By Gavin Evans

        April 1 (BusinessDesk) – KiwiRail plans to increase its log capacity out of Wairarapa by about a third to cater for the increased harvest and reduce the number of trucks travelling into CentrePort in Wellington.

        The company runs two trains on week days – typically of 15 wagons each – and twice as many at the weekend when there are fewer commuter services.

        Alan Piper, the group’s sales and commercial general manager, says the firm has no plans for additional services. But he says the weekday trains currently have surplus capacity and just require extra wagons to increase their loads.

        “We are planning to add 15 wagons to one of the daily trains in May, once more wagons become available,” he told BusinessDesk.

        “That will increase the capacity by around 100,000 tonnes a year from the current 270,000 tonnes” and reduce truck movements over the Remutaka Range by about 6,000, he said.

        Log exports are booming, with many ports working to increase capacity to handle trees planted in the 1990s. Logs and timber are the country’s third-largest export and brought in $5.3 billion in the 12 months through February, 12 percent more than a year earlier.

        KiwiRail is also investing heavily to capture more of that harvest for its own business. It is converting about 100 container wagons annually to carry logs and is expecting to receive an additional 200 new log wagons by the end of the year.

        New Zealand has about 1.7 million hectares of plantation forest, according to the Ministry for Primary Industries. The southern North Island – including Taranaki but excluding Central Hawke’s Bay – accounts for about 161,400 ha of that.

        CentrePort handled 891,500 tonnes of logs in the six months through December, 36 percent more than a year earlier. Port Taranaki handled about 425,000 tonnes in the same period, a 24 percent increase. Napier Port handled a record 2.2 million tonnes in the 12 months through September, 35 percent more than the year before.

        Wairarapa and Tararua is home to almost 70,000 ha of forest. KiwiRail delivers logs from the Waingawa hub south of Masterton. It was established in 2016 by CentrePort and local foresters.

        A new venture active this month wants to find ways to use that facility more efficiently.

        Forest Enterprises Growth, New Forests and Feilding-based FOMS have formed Log Distribution to better coordinate their shipments.

        The trio, some of whom also have operations around Gisborne and Rangitikei, are collaborating around their common interests in Hawke’s Bay and Wairarapa.

        Forest Enterprises chief executive Bert Hughes says recent changes mean all three firms are using Tauranga-based TPT to manage their export marketing and scheduling of their shipments.

        While they are still competing for sales, their logs are going on the same ships so they can work collaboratively to gather consignments and get vessels loaded quicker.

        Trees the partners source or harvest in Hawke’s Bay will continue to be shipped through Napier Port. Log Distribution’s early focus will be on ways to improve coordination of harvests, trucking and use of Waingawa.

        “We expect to put 600,000 tonnes through Wellington” a year, he told BusinessDesk.

        “Once we get that right, we can grow it out from there.”

        Hughes is expecting a steady increase in the Wairarapa harvest during the next five years and CentrePort is expanding storage at Waingawa.

        Burt he said reducing ‘choke-points’ in the logistics chain will be key to making better use of the region’s rail and port infrastructure and reducing truck movements on the Remutaka Range, he says.

        Being “a bit more careful” about the grade of logs being cut may improve the use of space at Waingawa and increase stock turn, he said.

        “Your need for extra storage is not as great, in effect, if you can move it down the chain faster.”

        Last week, Hughes said about 8,000 tonnes of logs were being railed to CentrePort weekly – the equivalent of 40 log trucks a day.

        Starting overnight services would be ideal, but while the supply of locomotives, log wagons and drivers remains tight, firms have to find other ways to maximise the use of the assets available.

        “We’ve just got to be more organised.”

        (BusinessDesk)

        ends

        • Sacha 11.1.1.1

          Please do not paste the whole article here – just the link and maybe a relevant sentence or paragraph will do.

    • Skunk Weed 11.2

      NZ Roads are getting chewed to bits by heavy trucks ?

  12. “It’s an accumulative effect, right? This is why the economy is weakening.

    It’s “cumulative effect,” Simon. You’re welcome. That second sentence is an outright lie.

    Maybe if NZ businesses didn’t treat the minimum wage as a default, the government wouldn’t have to keep increasing the minimum wage all the time. Causes have effects, you know?

  13. AB 13

    As Chomsky said – small changes in big powerful systems can make a worthwhile difference for individuals. So yeah that’s why Labour governments are always preferable.
    It’s like the back still hurts when you get up, but it’s maybe a bit better than yesterday and there’s some Voltaren in the cupboard so you can make it through the day. Not to be sneezed at.

  14. roy cartland 14

    “Can someone on the right explain how they would improve things?”
    • Lower taxes so “hard-working” people can keep more of “their” money
    • Sell “uncompetitive” assets and services and invest in “profitable” ones
    • Take government out of the role of, er, governing and leave it to privateers
    • Increase benefits for those who can pay or are paid well already
    • Whatever big-dairy farmers say they wants, they gets
    • Renege on environmental commitments because those that “want to” can always buy their way out of catastrophe
    • More open-door immigration, roads and guns…

    …sorry, what was the question again?

  15. cleangreen 15

    Today at 11 and 12 both psycho Milt and I were talking about how dangerous our NZ roads are.

    Then I signed off to turn on today’s news to find 9 people died today on our roads as the worst number since 2005 so I am now in total shock as we me and psycho Milt were talking together people were dying on our roads.

    So now we need the speed on our single lane roads lowered now before others get to be another statistic.

    Hastings District Council has lowered all local roads outside the city to 80kms last year and now the death rate is lowered to half of what it was when it was 100 kms.

    We hope now NZTA swiftly move to do the same all over the country as single lane roads should not be 100kms and only motorways outside the city boundaries should be 100kms.

    To think that it was just a year and a half ago the truck road transport industry was seeking that the speed be raised to 110 kms. What planet do they come from?

    Lower the road speed NZTA.

  16. David Mac 16

    A shot in the arm for the min wage makes small differences for those on a min wage. They’re presented with that harrowing choice between a kg of cheese or 4 litres of petrol.

    The benefits push on up. The guy running the fruit and vege dept at Countdown on $20 per hour now has a strengthened case to knock on his boss’s door and ask for $25.

  17. David Mac 17

    The business that faces bankruptcy because their wages overhead has increased by a few percentage points has 9 toes already in the grave.

    A smart business is looking for ways they can increase wages, not slash them. Pay well, attract the best.

  18. Pat 18

    Is a positive move….though it would be better if combined with an increase in progressive taxation….that however has been ruled out sadly, so ultimately it will be of little impact.

  19. David Mac 19

    I think an intrinsic contributor to our nation’s tourism success are long haul Air NZ cabin staff. I’m sure they have their critics but I think they’re ambassadors extraordinaire.

    Technically, they’re restaurant floor staff with first aid certificates and flexible diaries. They fall into the $18-$22 per hour pay grade sector.

    Largely because of a ‘bang the table’ union and partly because the Air NZ corporate swirl can see benefit in attracting and retaining the best it’s still a viable career choice.

    Much weight is placed in loyalty, each anniversary salaries take a $5k? pa hike. That’s why we see master hosts and hostesses, fabulous NZ ambassadors still pushing drinks carts up aisles 20 years after their first flight. They’re waiting staff with St John certs on $155k a year.

    It’s an outcome that shouldn’t be exclusive to a few like Airnz.

  20. my view 20

    As a national supporter I have to confess I believe this wage adjustment is long overdue and nationals caution is all about protecting business, and nothing about people’s well-being.

  21. Tuppence Shrewsburyi 21

    This is the first substantial benefit thus government has given the electorate. I suppose it’s important to make a big deal of it. Kind of pales in comparison to what could have been achieved in 18 months of government though

  22. David Mac 22

    Henry Ford doubled the average labourer’s wage, workers on his Model T line were paid $5 a day.

    It was a double edged sword, with the extra money came the pace of an assembly line and the monotony of getting really efficient at a mindless repetitive mundane task.

    It was a compromise, ‘my sweat for your coin’. Ford said ‘I want the people who work for me to have a Model T of their own.’

    It’s an ideal that we’re tending to cast aside. The thought that the best way for me to be successful is to assist you to be successful.

    • peterlepaysan 22.1

      Exactly. Ford was no bleeding heart liberal but saw the value in in having his employees having enough money to buy his product.

      If the current darlings of the media chatterers and politicians (kiwi small business) cannot afford to pay the minimum wage, or (good grief) the living wage they should get out of business and get a real job that pays (gasp) a living wage.

      Greed drives capitalism. Greed drives my cattle, sheep, chickens, cat and and dog as well as me. It is manageable, and has to be if we are to survive.

      It has to be managed. The “economy” has to be managed.

      If a business cannot afford to pay an employee the minimum wage let alone (gasp) the living wage it should not be in business.

      The owners should give up their “business” and get a real job that pays a living wage.
      Just share th wealth equitably. How hwrd is that? Sigh.

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    Buzz from the Beehive The distributions of two dollops of corporate welfare have been proudly announced in government press statements today, but neither mentions or relates to the further taxpayer funding for ski fields on the skids. The government’s official website tells of $7 million being provided to boost aerospace ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    9 hours ago
  • The police know they suck at the OIA
    In recent years I've done a long series of posts poking into police OIA data and how it hides how badly the police suck at carrying out their obligations under the Act. And in a response to a recent request, it seems the police have been doing the same. A ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    9 hours ago
  • Gordon Campbell on National’s disdain for the Press debate
    Christopher Luxon evidently thinks this election is SO in the bag that he can afford to spurn the still-undecideds, the entire South Island, and the old Christchurch money that still reads the Press and shops at Ballantynes. We should all shed a tear for the National Party candidates across the ...
    11 hours ago
  • ELIZABETH RATA: Two Treaties of Waitangi – the Articles Treaty and the Principles Treaty
    Elizabeth Rate writes – There are two versions of the Treaty of Waitangi.  The first is the 1840 Treaty – the ‘Articles Treaty’. The second is what I call the ‘Principles Treaty’. It dates from 1986 when the principles were first included in legislation. Astonishingly, the parliamentary ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    14 hours ago
  • Tuesday’s Chorus: When it's ok to borrow to invest
    Mayor Wayne Brown, a Northland land-banker himself, appears relaxed about borrowing to invest in land but not in, for example, transport infrastructure and services. File photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTL;DR: You couldn’t make this stuff up. A mayor determined to cut council debt by selling shares in a monopoly business because ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    15 hours ago
  • How well do our Rapid Transit Stations perform
    As we invest in our public transport network, it’s critical that we not only invest in transformative projects like the City Rail Link, but that we also get as much use as we can out of the network we already have – which will also maximise the outcomes of those ...
    17 hours ago
  • Bryce Edwards: Ten reasons Labour’s support has halved
    The Labour Government was elected with 50 per cent of the vote three years ago, but current opinion polls show their vote could halve in this year’s election, which would be one of the biggest plunges in political history. Most polls have Labour on about 26 per cent. And the ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    17 hours ago
  • Elizabeth Rata: Two Treaties of Waitangi: The Articles Treaty and the Principles Treaty
    Commentary There are two versions of the Treaty of Waitangi.  The first is the 1840 Treaty – the ‘Articles Treaty’. The second is what I call the ‘Principles Treaty’. It dates from 1986 when the principles were first included in legislation. Astonishingly the parliamentary representatives who inserted the word ‘principles’ ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    17 hours ago
  • Climate Emergency!
    It’s hard not to become a bit blasé towards climate change headlines. Flooding kills hundreds - blah. Catastrophic droughts - blah blah. One-in-a-hundred year events happening every year - blah blah blah.The earth had its highest temperature on record - again. Think we’ve read that one.So many articles telling us ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    18 hours ago
  • The Kākā Project: The economics of sufficiency
    The Kākā’s climate correspondent and had a chat with environmental historian and author Catherine Knight about why ‘feel good' actions like recycling and owning an electric car are unlikely to be enough to create a transition to zero emissions, let alone a just one. Knight says comments like ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    19 hours ago
  • Chippy misses a chance
    National leader Christopher Luxon has pulled out of any rescheduling of tonight’s Press debate, which has had to be cancelled because Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has Covid. The cancellation has given National an excuse to avoid a debate, which was always going to be a risk for Luxon. But ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    20 hours ago
  • The Angry Majority.
    The People's Champion vs The People's Prosecutor: It is the news media’s job to elicit information from politicians – not to prosecute them. Peters’ promise to sort out TVNZ should be believed. If he finds himself in a position to carry out his threat, then it will only be because ...
    1 day ago
  • Verrall is chuffed by govt’s latest push into pay equity while Woods enthuses about an $11m spend ...
    Buzz from the Beehive The headline on a ministerial press statement curiously expresses the government’s position when it declares:   Government shows further commitment to pay equity for healthcare workers. Is it not enough to declare just one commitment? Or is the government’s commitment to pay equity being declared sector by ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 day ago
  • A very worthy coalition partner for Seymour and Luxon
    There have been 53 New Zealand Parliaments so far. The 39th of them was elected in 1978. It was a parliament of 92 MPs, most of them men. The New Zealand Music Awards that year named John Rowles Male Vocalist of the Year and — after a short twelve months ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 day ago
  • Labour still protecting the status quo
    Aotearoa has a cost of living crisis. And one of the major drivers of this crisis is the supermarket duopoly, who gouge every dollar they can out of us. Last year, the Commerce Commission found that the duopoly was in fact anti-competititve, giving the government social licence to fix the ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 day ago
  • Gordon Campbell on National’s myths about the desolated state of the economy
    Familiarity breeds consent. If you repeat the line “six years of economic mis-management” about 10,000 times, it sounds like the received wisdom, whatever the evidence to the contrary. Yes, the global pandemic and the global surge in inflation that came in its wake occurred here as well – but if ...
    1 day ago
  • MICHAEL BASSETT: Hapless Hipkins and his racism
    Michael Bassett writes – Without so much as batting an eyelid, Chris Hipkins told an audience on Saturday that there had been “more racism” in this election campaign than ever before. And he blamed it on the opposition parties, National, Act and New Zealand First. In those ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • BRIAN EASTON: The ‘recession’ has been called off, but some households are still struggling
    While the economy is not doing too badly in output terms, external circumstances are not favourable, and there is probably a sizeable group of households struggling because of rising interest rates. Brian Easton writes – Last week’s announcement of a 0.9 percent increase in volume GDP for ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago
  • Monday’s Chorus: Richie Poulton's lament
    “You can't really undo what happens during childhood”, said the director of the Dunedin longitudinal study. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Richie Poulton, the director of the world-leading Dunedin longitudinal study showing how devastating poverty in early life is, died yesterday. With his final words, he lamented the lack ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • North-western downgrades
    This is a guest post from reader Peter N As many of us know, Auckland Transport and Waka Kotahi are well into progressing works on the northwestern interim “busway” with services to kick off in just over a month from now on Sunday 12th November 2023. Some of the ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    2 days ago
  • Has Webworm Found New Zealand’s Weirdest School?
    Hi,Before we talk about weird schools people choose to send their kids to, a few things on my mind. I adored the Ask Me Anything we did last week. Thanks for taking part. I love answering your weird and nosy questions, even questions about beans.I am excited and scared as Mister ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    2 days ago
  • Another mother of a budget
    A National government would make spending cuts on a scale not seen since the 1990 – 96 Bolger government.That much was confirmed with the release of their Fiscal Plan on Friday.Government spending is currently high as a percentage of GDP — as high as it was during the Muldoon ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago
  • A crucial week starts as early voting opens in the NZ Elections … it’s been a ride so far. Are y...
    Chris Hipkins down with Covid, at least for 5 days isolation, National continue to obfuscate, ACT continues to double-down on the poor and Winston… well, he’s being Winston really. Voters beware: this week could be even more infuriating than the last. No Party is what they used to be ...
    exhALANtBy exhalantblog
    2 days ago
  • 2023 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #39
    A chronological listing of news and opinion articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Sep 24, 2023 thru Sat, Sep 30, 2023. Story of the Week We’re not doomed yet’: climate scientist Michael Mann on our last chance to save human civilisation The renowned US ...
    3 days ago
  • Clusterf**ck of Chaos.
    On the 11th of April 1945 advancing US forces liberated the Nazi concentration camp of Buchenwald near Weimar in Germany. In the coming days, under the order of General Patton, a thousand nearby residents were forced to march to the camp to see the atrocities that had been committed in ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago
  • The party of business deals with the future by pretending it isn’t coming
    Years and years ago, when Helen Clark was Prime Minister and John Key was gunning for her job, I had a conversation with a mate, a trader who knew John Key well enough to paint a helpful picture.It was many drinks ago so it’s not a complete one. But there’s ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • 2023 More Reading: September (+ Old Phuul update)
    Completed reads for September: The Lost Continent, by C.J. Cutcliffe Hyne Flatland, by Edwin Abbott All Quiet on the Western Front, by Erich Maria Remarque The Country of the Blind, by H.G. Wells The Day of the Triffids, by John Wyndham A Tale of Two Cities, by Charles ...
    3 days ago
  • Losing The Left.
    Descending Into The Dark: The ideological cadres currently controlling both Labour and the Greens are forcing “justice”, “participation” and “democracy” to make way for what is “appropriate” and “responsible”. But, where does that leave the people who, for most of their adult lives, have voted for left-wing parties, precisely to ...
    3 days ago
  • The New “Emperor’s New Clothes”.
    “‘BUT HE HASN’T GOT ANYTHING ON,’ a little boy said ….. ‘But he hasn’t got anything on!’ the whole town cried out at last.”On this optimistic note, Hans Christian Andersen brings his cautionary tale of “The Emperor’s New Clothes” to an end.Andersen’s children’s story was written nearly two centuries ago, ...
    3 days ago
  • BRYCE EDWARDS: The vested interests shaping National Party policies
      Bryce Edwards writes – As the National Party gets closer to government, lobbyists and business interests will be lining up for influence and to get policies adopted. It’s therefore in the public interest to have much more scrutiny and transparency about potential conflicts of interests that ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • LINDSAY MITCHELL: A conundrum for those pushing racist dogma
    Lindsay Mitchell writes – The heavily promoted narrative, which has ramped up over the last six years, is that Maori somehow have special vulnerabilities which arise from outside forces they cannot control; that contemporary society fails to meet their needs. They are not receptive to messages and ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • CHRIS TROTTER:  The greater of two evils
    Not Labour: If you’re out to punish the government you once loved, then the last thing you need is to be shown evidence that the opposition parties are much, much worse.   Chris Trotter writes – THE GREATEST VIRTUE of being the Opposition is not being the Government. Only very ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to Sept 30
    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:Labour presented a climate manifesto that aimed to claim the high ground on climate action vs National, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Litanies, articles of faith, and being a beneficiary
    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past two weeks.Friday 29Play it, ElvisElection Hell special!! This week’s quiz is a bumper edition featuring a few of the more popular questions from last weekend’s show, as well as a few we didn’t ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago
  • Litanies, articles of faith, and being a beneficiary
    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past two weeks.Friday 29Play it, ElvisElection Hell special!! This week’s quiz is a bumper edition featuring a few of the more popular questions from last weekend’s show, as well as a few we didn’t ...
    More than a fieldingBy David Slack
    4 days ago
  • The ‘Recession’ Has Been Called Off, But Some Households Are Still Struggling
    While the economy is not doing too badly in output terms, external circumstances are not favourable, and there is probably a sizeable group of households struggling because of rising interest rates.Last week’s announcement of a 0.9 percent increase in volume GDP for the June quarter had the commentariat backing down ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago
  • Climate Change: The wrong direction
    This week the International Energy Association released its Net Zero Roadmap, intended to guide us towards a liveable climate. The report demanded huge increases in renewable generation, no new gas or oil, and massive cuts to methane emissions. It was positive about our current path, but recommended that countries with ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • “Racism” becomes a buzz word on the campaign trail – but our media watchdogs stay muzzled when...
    Buzz from the Beehive  Oh, dear.  We have nothing to report from the Beehive. At least, we have nothing to report from the government’s official website. But the drones have not gone silent.  They are out on the election campaign trail, busy buzzing about this and that in the hope ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • Play it, Elvis
    Election Hell special!! This week’s quiz is a bumper edition featuring a few of the more popular questions from last weekend’s show, as well as a few we didn’t have time for. You’re welcome, etc. Let us press on, etc. 1.  What did Christopher Luxon use to his advantage in ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago
  • Pure class warfare
    National unveiled its fiscal policy today, announcing all the usual things which business cares about and I don't. But it did finally tell us how National plans to pay for its handouts to landlords: by effectively cutting benefits: The biggest saving announced on Friday was $2b cut from the ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Ask Me Anything about the week to Sept 29
    Photo by Anna Ogiienko on UnsplashIt’s that time of the week for an ‘Ask Me Anything’ session for paying subscribers about the week that was for an hour, including:duelling fiscal plans from National and Labour;Labour cutting cycling spending while accusing National of being weak on climate;Research showing the need for ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 29-September-2023
    Welcome to Friday and the last one for September. This week in Greater Auckland On Monday, Matt highlighted at the latest with the City Rail Link. On Tuesday, Matt covered the interesting items from Auckland Transport’s latest board meeting agendas. On Thursday, a guest post from Darren Davis ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    5 days ago
  • Protest at Parliament: The Reunion.
    Brian’s god spoke to him. He, for of course the Lord in Tamaki’s mind was a male god, with a mighty rod, and probably some black leathers. He, told Brian - “you must put a stop to all this love, hope, and kindness”. And it did please the Brian.He said ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Labour cuts $50m from cycleway spending
    Labour is cutting spending on cycling infrastructure while still trying to claim the higher ground on climate. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Labour Government released a climate manifesto this week to try to claim the high ground against National, despite having ignored the Climate Commission’s advice to toughen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • The Greater Of Two Evils.
    Not Labour: If you’re out to punish the government you once loved, then the last thing you need is to be shown evidence that the opposition parties are much, much worse.THE GREATEST VIRTUE of being the Opposition is not being the Government. Only very rarely is an opposition party elected ...
    5 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #39 2023
    Open access notables "Net zero is only a distraction— we just have to end fossil fuel emissions." The latter is true but the former isn't, or  not in the real world as it's likely to be in the immediate future. And "just" just doesn't enter into it; we don't have ...
    5 days ago
  • Chris Trotter: Losing the Left
    IN THE CURRENT MIX of electoral alternatives, there is no longer a credible left-wing party. Not when “a credible left-wing party” is defined as: a class-oriented, mass-based, democratically-structured political organisation; dedicated to promoting ideas sharply critical of laissez-faire capitalism; and committed to advancing democratic, egalitarian and emancipatory ideals across the ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    5 days ago
  • Road rage at Kia Kaha Primary School
    It is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha Primary School!It can be any time when you are telling a story.Telling stories about things that happened in the past is how we learn from our mistakes.If we want to.Anyway, it is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago
  • Road rage at Kia Kaha Primary School
    It is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha Primary School!It can be any time when you are telling a story.Telling stories about things that happened in the past is how we learn from our mistakes.If we want to.Anyway, it is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago
  • Road rage at Kia Kaha Primary School
    It is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha Primary School!It can be any time when you are telling a story.Telling stories about things that happened in the past is how we learn from our mistakes.If we want to.Anyway, it is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha ...
    More than a fieldingBy David Slack
    5 days ago
  • Hipkins fires up in leaders’ debate, but has the curtain already fallen on the Labour-led coalitio...
    Labour’s  Chris Hipkins came out firing, in the  leaders’ debate  on Newshub’s evening programme, and most of  the pundits  rated  him the winner against National’s  Christopher Luxon. But will this make any difference when New  Zealanders  start casting their ballots? The problem  for  Hipkins is  that  voters are  all too ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    5 days ago
  • Govt is energising housing projects with solar power – and fuelling the public’s concept of a di...
    Buzz from the Beehive  Not long after Point of Order published data which show the substantial number of New Zealanders (77%) who believe NZ is becoming more divided, government ministers were braying about a programme which distributes some money to “the public” and some to “Maori”. The ministers were dishing ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • MIKE GRIMSHAW: Election 2023 – a totemic & charisma failure?
    The D&W analysis Michael Grimshaw writes –  Given the apathy, disengagement, disillusionment, and all-round ennui of this year’s general election, it was considered time to bring in those noted political operatives and spin doctors D&W, the long-established consultancy firm run by Emile Durkheim and Max Weber. Known for ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • FROM BFD: Will Winston be the spectre we think?
    Kissy kissy. Cartoon credit BoomSlang. The BFD. JC writes-  Allow me to preface this contribution with the following statement: If I were asked to express a preference between a National/ACT coalition or a National/ACT/NZF coalition then it would be the former. This week Luxon declared his position, ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • California’s climate disclosure bill could have a huge impact across the U.S.
    This re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Andy Furillo was originally published by Capital & Main and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. The California Legislature took a step last week that has the potential to accelerate the fight against climate ...
    6 days ago
  • Untangling South East Queensland’s Public Transport
    This is a cross post Adventures in Transitland by Darren Davis. I recently visited Brisbane and South East Queensland and came away both impressed while also pondering some key changes to make public transport even better in the region. Here goes with my take on things. A bit of ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    6 days ago
  • Try A Little Kindness.
    My daughter arrived home from the supermarket yesterday and she seemed a bit worried about something. It turned out she wanted to know if someone could get her bank number from a receipt.We wound the story back.She was in the store and there was a man there who was distressed, ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago
  • What makes NZFirst tick
    New Zealand’s longest-running political roadshow rolled into Opotiki yesterday, with New Zealand First leader Winston Peters knowing another poll last night showed he would make it back to Parliament and National would need him and his party if they wanted to form a government. The Newshub Reid Research poll ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    6 days ago
  • September AMA
    Hi,As September draws to a close — I feel it’s probably time to do an Ask Me Anything. You know how it goes: If you have any burning questions, fire away in the comments and I will do my best to answer. You might have questions about Webworm, or podcast ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • Bludgers lying in the scratcher making fools of us all
    The mediocrity who stands to be a Prime Minister has a litany.He uses it a bit like a Koru Lounge card. He will brandish it to say: these people are eligible. And more than that, too: These people are deserving. They have earned this policy.They have a right to this policy. What ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago
  • More “partnerships” (by the look of it) and redress of over $30 million in Treaty settlement wit...
    Buzz from the Beehive Point of Order has waited until now – 3.45pm – for today’s officially posted government announcements.  There have been none. The only addition to the news on the Beehive’s website was posted later yesterday, after we had published our September 26 Buzz report. It came from ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • ALEX HOLLAND: Labour’s spending
    Alex Holland writes –  In 2017 when Labour came to power, crown spending was $76 billion per year. Now in 2023 it is $139 billion per year, which equates to a $63 billion annual increase (over $1 billion extra spend every week!) In 2017, New Zealand’s government debt ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • If not now, then when?
    Labour released its fiscal plan today, promising the same old, same old: "responsibility", balanced books, and of course no new taxes: "Labour will maintain income tax settings to provide consistency and certainty in these volatile times. Now is not the time for additional taxes or to promise billions of ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago
  • THE FACTS:  77% of Kiwis believe NZ is becoming more divided
    The Facts has posted –        KEY INSIGHTSOf New Zealander’s polled: Social unity/division 77%believe NZ is becoming more divided (42% ‘much more’ + 35% ‘a little more’) 3%believe NZ is becoming less divided (1% ‘much less’ + 2% ‘a little less’) ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on the cynical brutality of the centre-right’s welfare policies
    The centre-right’s enthusiasm for forcing people off the benefit and into paid work is matched only by the enthusiasm (shared by Treasury and the Reserve Bank) for throwing people out of paid work to curb inflation, and achieve the optimal balance of workers to job seekers deemed to be desirable ...
    7 days ago
  • Wednesday’s Chorus: Arthur Grimes on why building many, many more social houses is so critical
    New research shows that tenants in social housing - such as these Wellington apartments - are just as happy as home owners and much happier than private tenants. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The election campaign took an ugly turn yesterday, and in completely the wrong direction. All three ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    7 days ago
  • Bennie Bashing.
    If there’s one thing the mob loves more than keeping Māori in their place, more than getting tough on the gangs, maybe even more than tax cuts. It’s a good old round of beneficiary bashing.Are those meanies in the ACT party stealing your votes because they think David Seymour is ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    7 days ago
  • The kindest cuts
    Labour kicks off the fiscal credibility battle today with the release of its fiscal plan. National is expected to follow, possibly as soon as Thursday, with its own plan, which may (or may not) address the large hole that the problems with its foreign buyers’ ban might open up. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    7 days ago
  • Green right turn in Britain? Well, a start
    While it may be unlikely to register in New Zealand’s general election, Britain’s PM Rishi Sunak has done something which might just be important in the long run. He’s announced a far-reaching change in his Conservative government’s approach to environmental, and particularly net zero, policy. The starting point – ...
    Point of OrderBy xtrdnry
    7 days ago
  • At a glance – How do human CO2 emissions compare to natural CO2 emissions?
    On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
    1 week ago
  • How could this happen?
    Canada is in uproar after the exposure that its parliament on September 22 provided a standing ovation to a Nazi veteran who had been invited into the chamber to participate in the parliamentary welcome to Ukrainian President Zelensky. Yaroslav Hunka, 98, a Ukrainian man who volunteered for service in ...
    1 week ago
  • Always Be Campaigning
    The big screen is a great place to lay out the ways of the salesman. He comes ready-made for Panto, ripe for lampooning.This is not to disparage that life. I have known many good people of that kind. But there is a type, brazen as all get out. The camera ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago

  • Youth justice programme expands to break cycle of offending
    The successful ‘Circuit Breaker’ fast track programme designed to stop repeat youth offending was launched in two new locations today by Children’s Minister Kelvin Davis. The programme, first piloted in West and South Auckland in December last year, is aimed at children aged 10-13 who commit serious offending or continue ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    11 hours ago
  • Major milestone with 20,000 employers using Apprenticeship Boost
    The Government’s Apprenticeship Boost initiative has now supported 20,000 employers to help keep on and train up apprentices, Minister for Social Development and Employment Carmel Sepuloni announced in Christchurch today. Almost 62,000 apprentices have been supported to start and keep training for a trade since the initiative was introduced in ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    13 hours ago
  • Government supporting wood processing jobs and more diverse industry
    The Government is supporting non-pine tree sawmilling and backing further job creation in sawmills in Rotorua and Whangarei, Forestry Minister Peeni Henare said.   “The Forestry and Wood Processing Industry Transformation Plan identified the need to add more diversity to our productions forests, wood products and markets,” Peeni Henare said. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    14 hours ago
  • Government backing Canterbury’s future in aerospace industry
    The Government is helping Canterbury’s aerospace industry take off with further infrastructure support for the Tāwhaki Aerospace Centre at Kaitorete, Infrastructure Minister Dr Megan Woods has announced. “Today I can confirm we will provide a $5.4 million grant to the Tāwhaki Joint Venture to fund a sealed runway and hangar ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    14 hours ago
  • Updated forestry regulations increase council controls and require large slash removal
    Local councils will have more power to decide where new commercial forests – including carbon forests – are located, to reduce impacts on communities and the environment, Environment Minister David Parker said today. “New national standards give councils greater control over commercial forestry, including clear rules on harvesting practices and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    15 hours ago
  • New Zealand resumes peacekeeping force leadership
    New Zealand will again contribute to the leadership of the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) in the Sinai Peninsula, Egypt, with a senior New Zealand Defence Force officer returning as Interim Force Commander. Defence Minister Andrew Little and Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta have announced the deployment of New Zealand ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • New national direction provides clarity for development and the environment
    The Government has taken an important step in implementing the new resource management system, by issuing a draft National Planning Framework (NPF) document under the new legislation, Environment Minister David Parker said today. “The NPF consolidates existing national direction, bringing together around 20 existing instruments including policy statements, standards, and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Government shows further commitment to pay equity for healthcare workers
    The Government welcomes the proposed pay equity settlement that will see significant pay increases for around 18,000 Te Whatu Ora Allied, Scientific, and Technical employees, if accepted said Health Minister Ayesha Verrall. The proposal reached between Te Whatu Ora, the New Zealand Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • 100 new public EV chargers to be added to national network
    The public EV charging network has received a significant boost with government co-funding announced today for over 100 EV chargers – with over 200 charging ports altogether – across New Zealand, and many planned to be up and running on key holiday routes by Christmas this year. Minister of Energy ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Safeguarding Tuvalu language and identity
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