The right work themselves into a frenzy about Ardern and Curran

Written By: - Date published: 3:52 pm, September 7th, 2018 - 65 comments
Categories: blogs, David Farrar, Dirty Politics, dpf, jacinda ardern, labour - Tags:

The latest right wing beat up is that Jacinda told a porkie this morning to Chris Lynch on Newstalk ZB.

In the interests of balance, as well as reality and fact checking here is the transcript. JA is Ardern and CL is Lynch.

JA – Good morning

CL – Have you spoken to Clare Curran yet?

JA – Yes I have.

CL – About what?

JA – About the past couple of days, just about what’s been going on for her. Yep as you would expect.

CL – Have you considered as Prime Minister cutting ties with Clare Curran because some would suggest she is becoming a liability to your Government.

JA – Keep in mind she did not put her appointment in a diary and she lost her position in Cabinet over it.

CL – Are you considering cutting ties with her, firing her?

JA – No, because I think she’s paid her price. I have huge expectations of my ministers and those in the ministry but I also accept that from time to time they will also have bad days. I have to keep in mind that we do want to make sure that we don’t set the bar so high that you can’t have a situation where you show a bit of human frailty and lose your job over it.

Clearly every answer that Jacinda gave was correct. She was not considering firing Curran and Curran jumped rather than was pushed. In both tone and context her answers were correct.

Perhaps she could have volunteered the information that Curran had tendered her resignation but allowing Curran the ability to announce it herself is the sort of thing a compassionate leader would do.

DPF thinks that there is some sort of conspiracy happening because the leader’s office sent him a transcript without the word “cutting ties with her”. What nonsense. Curran remains a member of the caucus. Of course Ardern is not cutting ties with Curran.

This will not stop the usual suspects from asserting otherwise, loudly.

65 comments on “The right work themselves into a frenzy about Ardern and Curran ”

  1. lprent 1

    David Farrar is an idiot troll with the political instincts of a private eye dumpster diver.

    There are few repugnant things that are now below his partisan approach to anything.

    The transcript above pretty clearly shows how far he is willing to lie in the pursuit of his stupidity.

    I guess that being a pollster for an opposition party allows for fewer scruples.

    (see – his kind of sleaze is easy to duplicate.)

    • Stunned Mullet 1.2

      • lprent 1.3.1

        Yeah it reads just like the last time that Farrar’s polling company Curia called me. The same kind of dumbarse bullshit that kept John Key alive politically as a kind of limp marionette jerked around by issue polling.

        Of course over 9 years, it meant that nothing much was achieved except to make WINS stupidly aggressive wasting money as they attempted to get the poor to live in their cars, oh and I forgot – there was a stupid referendum and a few sporting circuses especially for the idiots who voted National.

        To be frank I couldn’t give a shit about word merchants like Farrar, Key and (unfortunately) Curran and the few other waffling politicians. They don’t do anything substantive and they can’t build anything up apart from their inflated egos. Basically I view them as being largely useless and lacking in any real skills outside of self-promotion.

        But I’ve spent my life building software, companies, and businesses. Unlike those types of useless dipshits, I only have occasional excursions into the political sphere, when I defensively help the few politicians that I think are worth adding support to.

    • dukeofurl 1.4

      Yet because of his blog belongs to the NZ Media Council he is able to get transcripts from The PMs department as a media outlet !

    • Ngungukai 1.5

      The right wing rats and trolls are having an orgy at Kiwi Blog and Radio NZ over Clare Curran ?

  2. Chuck 2

    From DPF: “This just shows again that the political management is so lacking. They’ve turned a story about Curran resigning into a story about the PM.”

    More than “lacking” its terrible management. Ardern had media interviews this morning… the best case was that Ardern had to dance on a head of a pin…Labour need Helen Clark to come back in and sort there shit out 🙂

    Meka is next up…

  3. chris73 3

    “Perhaps she could have volunteered the information that Curran had tendered her resignation”

    The thng is though that Jacinda made a quite a big deal about telling lies as a politician during the debates and she didn’t lie today but she also skirted around and played cute with the truth and people are generally tuned into when a politician is lying or dancing on the head of a pin

    If nothing else shes spending her political capital on matters that she shouldn’t need to

    • McFlock 3.1

      We saw what happen when Little said publicly that he’d considered resigning. The pack of hounds went berserk.

      Ardern was giving Curran an opportunity to sleep on it and reconsider, and talked it over with her mid-morning. Like any good boss whose employee has a bad day at work and considers quitting.

      Maybe that’s what she should have said today. But then the tories would have found something else to whinge about, or simply lied about what was said (again).

      Meh. Curran’s out, Ardern and Peters have had a day or two to talk about immigration in private. Nats shot themselves in the foot whille plucking the low-hanging fruit (Curran would have been there next week, doing something else).

      • Chuck 3.1.1

        “Ardern was giving Curran an opportunity to sleep on it and reconsider, and talked it over with her mid-morning.”

        So then according to you, McFlock Ardern is lying when she said this…

        “In a statement this afternoon, Ardern said”, “Clare Curran contacted me last night to confirm her wish to resign as a minister and I accepted that resignation”.

        https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12121235

        You can’t have it both ways…one of the above is false.

        • McFlock 3.1.1.1

          Nope.

          Once it’s announced, there’s no takey-backsies.

          Curran asked, Ardern accepted, and let her sleep on it.

    • Ankerrawshark 3.2

      Yes but Chris 73 within half a day the public knew of the resignation. Surely when we have big news we can decide when and how it is released. I done that and I would suspect you have too. Think about it……

  4. Enough is Enough 4

    For better or worse this is what politics is about Greg. There in no need to be outraged by it.

    As an opposition your one goal is to bring down the government, minister by minister if need be.

    When you knock one off, you rejoice. When you can frame the Prime Minister as being slippery with the truth, you yell it as loud as you can.

    That is what we expect of a good opposition

    • McFlock 4.1

      No, it’s what we expect of a corrupt opposition: inventing stories and seeking only to disparage and destry.

      A good opposition will take good government policies and actions and sustain or improve them, while calling bad policies and behaviours to account. So things like improper or excessive use of funds, IT projects turning into gaping sores, yes even lax or misleading answers to the House are all things to be thrust into the spotlight. It encourages governments to do better in all aspects, cancelling the projects rather than going live with broken software, moderating entourage size and expenditures, and taking care to not meld the personal with the parliamentary.

      A corrupt opposition is just about scalps at any price.

    • ianmac 4.2

      “As an opposition your one goal is to bring down the government, minister by minister if need be.”
      Really? It certainly looks like that with this Opposition, but I thought that their job was to hold the Government to account on behalf of the people. This means asking the right questions and expecting the right answers. It doesn’t mean persecuting.

      The Right are going for JA and CC right now on RNZ.

  5. Roy cartland 5

    Even No Right Turn is at it. If there was ever a time to bray “but her emails!!!!”…

  6. mary_a 6

    I have read the Chris Lynch interview with Jacinda Ardern several times and can’t find anything there indicating the PM is lying. Would be very difficult to come to any other conclusion, considering the eventual outcome, with Curran voluntarily resigning her position as minister.

    Now with hindsight of events over the past day or so, how is it possible to not interpret the CL/JA interview correctly? I guess bitterness and vindictiveness clouds the brain somewhat, making rational thought impossible, as seems to be the case here with Natz, along with its one eyed troupe of followers.

    Now how is Natz’s enquiry into itself going? Any finger pointing yet Simon?

    • Ed 6.1

      Another piece of evidence to show why the media needs to be reformed.
      When will Labour realise?
      The corporate media is the enemy.

      • Philj 6.1.1

        Not just the corporate media. Ironically RNZ, or should I say ‘National’Radio, have been quick to participate in the media frenzy.
        Clare failed on the promise of a quality commercial free TV channel. I asked former Labour broadcasting Minister, Marion Hobbes, for at least one decent TV channel 19 years ago. And we’re still waiting… RNZ are increasingly contracting out content provision to the private sector. How much, I would like to know. RNZ is going the way of TVNZ.

    • Carolyn_Nth 6.2

      Jane Patterson of RNZ had a fair analysis of the situation. She said that Ardern worded her ZB response this morning very carefully. She said Ardern did not say Curran’s job was safe, but people may have got that impression from the interview. Patterson said, ultimately, the voters will decide, because there will be different views on the interview.

      She also said Key and Clark would have been more decisive and dismissed Curran. However, JP thinks it’s possible that Ardern will be a different kind of PM, because, ultimately, she was careful to allow Curran to make her own decision. And, also that it would be up to voters whether they like Ardern’s style.

      Bronwyn Hayward on twitter warned that rural South Dunedin may not be happy about Curran losing her ministerial positions, and this might indicate why Ardern was careful to let Curran make her own decision and be seen to do so. Hayward, said:

      South Dunedin is a very large electorate- both urban and rural-ironically there are no purely rural electorates left in the Otago region & having the voice of a Minister added status. So the emphasis will now need to be on Curran’s renewed focus on wider electorate needs. #nzpol

      Worth all #nzpol parties thinking about how disenfranchised rural communities like Otago feel with loss of electorate representation & how hard regional communities are working to stay afloat-finding new creative ways to hold conversations that bridge divides can enrich everyone

    • Chuck 6.3

      Make sure you read the full transcript of the ZB interview.

      In the ZB interview, Ardern was asked if she had considered cutting ties. Saying no to that exposes the lie.

      As Ardern had accepted Curran resignation the night before (or as some here suggest Ardern told Curran to sleep on it). Ardern had at the very least considered cutting ties. That is the lie.

      • Ross 6.3.1

        In the ZB interview, Ardern was asked if she had considered cutting ties. Saying no to that exposes the lie.

        Only in your fevered imagination.

        By the way, what do you think were the worst of Key’s lies?

        • Chuck 6.3.1.1

          “Only in your fevered imagination.”

          Ha, not just my imagination Ross.

          John Key has been and gone, as has Helen Clark etc.

          The media (and nonpartisan voters) will now treat Ardern with a little sideways look from this point onward. A tonne of political capital has just been spent by one J. Ardern.

        • terry 6.3.1.2

          not talking about key,she lied,simple.

  7. Booker 7

    Considering the outright lies and extremely slippery use of language by John Key and Bill English when they were PMs, this is the most transparent PM we’ve had in a decade. That’s the real problem for Farrar – whenever he tries to say Ardern is misleading, it would have to be extreme to meet the usual behavior of the people he supports.

    • Chris T 7.1

      They are no longer the govt

      Flogging the “What about them?” tends to just look a bit desperate after nearly a year

    • dukeofurl 7.2

      Farrar seems to think Barclay ‘just made a little mistake’

      Forgets he lied through his teeth for more than year about a (small) crime and the whole thing was covered up by the Deputy PM.

  8. Chris T 8

    How hard would it have been for Ardern to say something like Curran was “Concerned with the situation and assessing her position”

    Or some other PR crap

    Instead of looking dodgy as she does now (either justifiably or not)

    • nordy 8.1

      Duh……you haven’t got the memo yet? The PM isn’t into ‘PR crap’, that was the last government you are thinking of.

      There is nothing dodgy about simple, plain speaking.

      Get used to it, it’s going to be round for quite a while.

      • Chris T 8.1.1

        Oh right. She is the epitome of open govt

        I’d forgotten when her open govt minister got ditched for dishonesty

        Im not all the media calling the honesty of her comments into question.

        Which is what the punters pick up on.

        But good luck with that

      • terry 8.1.2

        So Lying is ok by your opinion.

        [lprent: You appear to be astroturfing assertions again. Lets nip that in the bud shall we. Banned for 3 weeks for lying by omitting any supporting arguments for your assertions (yes there is humour in that sentence) and for being a simply stupid troll. ]

    • McFlock 8.2

      Because you’d still say “but she’d already resigned, Ardern told a LIE”.

      And you’d [edit-might have me chrisses mixed up soz] still smell blood so pour on the pressure over the next week.

      Whereas there was always the possibility that Curran would have a sleep, a think, a cup of tea, realise it’s all just penny-ante bullshit, come out reinvigorated and simply take more care about the details. Or formally decide to resign and make a prepared announcement in the morning.

      That was the opportunity she had with Ardern’s approach.

  9. pete 9

    It’ time The PM cut back on media interviews. This being all over everything every day was started I think by Helen Clark. It means the PM is feeding into the Right wing media stories constantly ie giving them something to twist around for their own agenda. when there is a hot issue stay out of the media unless you have something to say to deflate the opposition. By constantly doing interview the PM is helping drive the issue.
    And people in the PM’s office should be more aware of being in the bubble. Out here among the masses no one knows who Clare Curran is, and certainly no one can figure what she did so wrong.

  10. Observer Tokoroa 10

    The Pitiful Nats

    The people who flock around the unfortunate Simon Bridges, never explain why Simon is such a misfit.

    Surely, somebody in National could release to the public of New Zealand why they put an embarrassing and struggling non entity in charge of themselves.

    Too many skeletons in the Key/ English/ Bennett/ Collins cupboard ? Cupboards they don’t want opened.

    In the mean time, Simon is trying to wreck the whole of the East Coast. Does not want roads or rail fixed – or anything else. But then a misfit is a misfit – and always will be.

    He calls Gisborne a slush fund ! Brilliant.

    • Frankie and Benjie 10.1

      I think they have stuck with Britches because they like the willingness of their leader to say and do anything for power. And they at least see this ability in him. When some politicians leave they are acknowledged as having some honorable values by many sides. I struggle to see any sign of the Hon. quality in the Nats I’ve heard of. Maybe there are some lurking further down the list (hopefully looking on in horror).
      For example; Soimon no, Paula hell no, Brownlee pfrrt, Judith arrgggg, Mark Mitchell eek, and others I heard of don’t change the trend…

  11. Ankerrawshark 11

    I think it is reasonable that the PM didn’t announce the news on the AM shows timing.

    She had the interview. She answered the questions. She wasn’t asked if Clare had offered her resignation. Clare may have wanted time to let her staff, friends and family know before it was made public. The PM may also have wanted to confirm kris F was willing and able to take over Clare’s port folio before the announcement was made, so that the process was stream lined.

    There is an attempt at the moment to develop the meme that Jacinda is a weak leader. That’s bull shit. She’s a fair and compassionate leader and there has been action taken on two ministers who have or may have messed up. I think the action has been appropriate. Btw I was in the house yesterday and all the coalition members who spoke came across really well. Very sharp and onto it. Opposition looked weak. Congratulations to Phil Twyford re the job he is doing with housing. Collins asked him about empty state houses. In 9 months it’s gone from one on twenty to one in fifty. Well done labour. Let’s talk about the real issues

  12. R.P Mcmurphy 12

    Clare Curran is still an MP and has an electorate to service. The nationals party might crow about knocking her off her perch but the sun will still be shining on monday morning and simon dallow has had a let off before he finally gets fired.

  13. Lucy 13

    I would say that no one has asked who in Clare Curran’s office is feeding stories to Melissa Lee.

  14. Labour_Voter 14

    It would have been much better if the PM said, I am in communications with Ms Curran and leave it at that. Now however, you may spin, there is a perception that Ms Ardern was not accurate with her statements. In politics perception is everything. While I am not happy that this is a huge distraction with the policy programme of this government, no doubt this could have been managed much much better. No denying that.

  15. Ankerrawshark 15

    Ok labour-voter…… keep looking for a very polished delivery. I am more concerned with the overall sense that the govt will be honest, will discipline problematic behavior and have our best interests at heart. On that score I give jacinda 10 out of 10

  16. Marg 16

    Goodness me the trolls are out in force across social media and with such glee as well. It is almost as if Clare’s unfortunate errors are the first of their kind. There have been regular and similar goings-on in all Governments as long as I remember, that is 60+ years. Social media’s appalling responses are tantamount to bullying at its worst. It all seems totally over the top.

    What concerns me are the bully verbal tactics used by the Opposition, starting with the urgent debate Wednesday last, on Clare’s removal from her two portfolios. The screaming fits of SB and PB and others is quite ridiculous, one doesn’t have to scream to get ones point across If these bullying verbal and harassment tactics occurred in a ‘normal’ work place heads would roll- the employment court would be busy.

    I’m very much aware that the Oppositions role is to keep the Government responsible but personal attacks to demean, belittle to the point demonising with the intent to break someone is surely not acceptable in this day and age; in fact it is a form of violence. Is there any need for the parliamentary rhetorical space to be so confrontational and adversarial?

    Of course it is a place of rhetorical performance too, but the current performance is surely an example of very poor performance. Somehow society’s expectations as displayed in the current social media spat is that our Parliamentary rhetorical and performance space continue to be measured by male values of authoritativeness in decision making, and confrontational performance. Parliamentary rhetorical space has been built on centuries of male-loaded power so it will hard to break down. The Speaker should have a role to play in correcting this dismal performance?

  17. Delia 17

    Apart from looking for a leaker, what else has the Opposition got to do? I mean it is never about the good of NZ with them, is it?

  18. Ngungukai 18

    The National Party Opposition is in disarray and currently picking at the low hanging fruit, most NZ’ers do not give a rats arse about this trivial nonsense being promoted by MSM. The maturity and credibility of MSM in NZ is virtually zero on a scale of 1 to 10 ?

    • Kat 18.1

      And David Farrar is hastily reworking his polling right at this “Clare” moment to leverage any “dissatisfaction” with the govt. Still, the Nat faithful believe they will be the govt in 2020. I guess for them living in hope is better than the despair of reality. Just how anyone with a minuscule of grey matter could seriously think that Bridges and Bennett will lead a National govt in 2020 is beyond any hope though.

      • Ffloyd 18.1.1

        Now that you mention Bennet I would like to know how she got the position she has?

        • Kat 18.1.1.1

          Sacrificial position, and if leader of the opposition is the worst job in politics then what does that say for being deputy leader of the opposition…….most likely explains her constantly moving facial expressions, raising of eyebrows, looking fervently about and arm waving in parliament.

  19. Venezia 19

    The government now needs to sort out the public broadcasting issues. Firstly Radio NZ national needs to have a name change. Secondly whoever writes the RNZ National news broadcasts needs to be fired. There is disproportionate time given to Soiman’s opinions as news, and that of National Party spokepersons in general. It is a disgrace. Thirdly, with a few exceptions, I have had enough of the low quality programming like Jim Mora and his mates infection of the airwaves.
    Next, NZ television in general is such low quality I never go there, and neither does anyone I know. So taxpayer funding is servicing the needs of advertisers and those who are semi-comatose or are in Rest Homes.
    Please, Please, – review, overhaul, find a new model for both Radio and TV. Please.

  20. Darien Fenton 20

    OK all ; the righties have had their spew. For me, today Im just trying to imagine the awfulness and personal hurt for Clare Curran. And for all of you who tried to do a job on her in the past. Shame on you. Yes, theres work to do, but please lets not join in with this scalp hunting.

  21. Ed 21

    The good.

    What a hero.

    “A vegan cafe owner who was issued an ultimatum to serve cow’s milk has generated 14,000 signatures of support, but will still close shop to walk the length of New Zealand barefoot in protest.

    Morgan Redfern-Hardisty roused controversy last week after he revealed the community trust that controls his Cool Beans Cafe in Mangawhai insisted he serve dairy options on the menu.

    Redfern-Hardisty had altered his menu on July 27 to exclusively plant-based products, including homemade oat milk for coffee, in an effort to reduce his environmental impact.”

  22. Dennis Frank 22

    There seems to be a valid reason for Jacinda being economical with the truth: the protocols around ministerial resignations. “I hadn’t received her resignation at that point,” said Ardern. “I hadn’t moved the warrants on. I hadn’t called or even spoke to the ministers who needed to take over the job. I hadn’t informed the cabinet office and so that would have been absolutely premature. Once all that was in place I was in a position to make clear what she had decided to do.”
    https://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=12121235

    Given that she was busy in Gisborne at the time, organising a major regional development announcement with Shane Jones, any fair-minded person can see that the delay in announcing the resignation is understandable.

    “Opposition Leader Simon Bridges said Ardern must explain why she “misled New Zealanders this morning by saying Ms Curran’s job was safe”.” Unless he can provide evidence that she did say that, Bridges is lying. I’ve seen no such evidence so far!

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    Ooh, Friday the thirteenth. Spooky! Is that why certain zombie ideas have been stalking the landscape this week, like the Mayor’s brainwave for a motorway bridge from Kauri Point to Point Chev? Read on and find out. This roundup, like all our coverage, is brought to you by the Greater ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    2 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #37 2024

    Open access notables Early knowledge but delays in climate actions: An ecocide case against both transnational oil corporations and national governments, Hauser et al., Environmental Science & Policy: Cast within the wide context of investigating the collusion at play between powerful political-economic actors and decision-makers as monopolists and debates about ‘the modern ...
    3 days ago
  • What it is

    I liked what Kieran McAnulty had to say about the Treaty Principles bill this morning so much I've written it down and copied it out for you. He was saying that rather than let this piece of ordure spend six months in Select Committee, the Prime Minister could stop making such ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • A government-funded hate campaign

    Cabinet discussed National's constitutionally and historically illiterate "Treaty Principles Bill" this week, and decided to push on with it. The bill will apparently receive a full six month select committee process - unlike practically every other policy this government has pushed, and despite the fact that if the government is ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago
  • How Substack works to take (some) craziness out of America’s elections

    I spoke with Substack co-founder yesterday, just before the Trump-Harris debate, about how Substack is doing its thing during the US elections. He talks in particular about how Substack’s focus on paid subscriptions rather than ads has made political debate on the platform calmer, simpler, deeper and more satisfying ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • Kamala Harris Did Something Unthinkable

    Hi,Yesterday me and a bunch of friends gathered in front of the TV, ate tortillas, drank wine, and watched the debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.Some of you may have joined in on the live Webworm chat where we shared thoughts, jokes and memes — and a basic glee ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    3 days ago
  • Kamala Harris Did Something Unthinkable

    Hi,Yesterday me and a bunch of friends gathered in front of the TV, ate tortillas, drank wine, and watched the debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.Some of you may have joined in on the live Webworm chat where we shared thoughts, jokes and memes — and a basic glee ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    3 days ago
  • Kamala Harris Did Something Unthinkable

    Hi,Yesterday me and a bunch of friends gathered in front of the TV, ate tortillas, drank wine, and watched the debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.Some of you may have joined in on the live Webworm chat where we shared thoughts, jokes and memes — and a basic glee ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    3 days ago
  • David Seymour is such a loser

    For paid subscribersNot content with siphoning off $230,000,000 of taxpayers money for his hobby projects - and telling everyone his passion is education and early childcare - an intersection painfully coincidental to the interests of wealthy private families like Sean Plunkett’s1 backers, the Wright Family, Seymour is back in the ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    3 days ago
  • Cross-party consensus: there’s no pipeline without good faith

    There’s been a lot of talk recently about a cross-party agreement to develop a pipeline for infrastructure, including transport. Last month, outgoing CRL boss Sean Sweeney talked about the importance of securing an enduring infrastructure programme. He outlined the high costs of the relentless political flip-flopping of priorities, which drives ...
    Greater AucklandBy Connor Sharp
    3 days ago
  • Voters love this climate policy they’ve never heard of

    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Karin Kirk The Inflation Reduction Act is the Biden administration’s signature climate law and the largest U.S. government investment in reducing climate pollution to date. Among climate advocates, the policy is well-known and celebrated, but beyond that, only a minority of Americans ...
    3 days ago
  • ACC wants to administer inflation at more than double the RBNZ’s target rate

    ACC levies are set to rise at more than double the inflation rate targeted by the RBNZ. Photo: Lynn GrievesonKia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Thursday, September 12:The state-owned monopoly for accident insurance wants ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • Harris vs Trump

    We’ve been selected to rock your asses 'til midnightThis is my term, I've shaved off my perm, but it's alrightI solemnly swear to uphold the ConstitutionGot a rock 'n' roll problem? Well we got a solutionLet us be who we am, and let us kick out the jams, yeahKick out ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago
  • Treaty Bill “a political stunt”

    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon appears to have given ACT Leader David Seymour more than he has been admitting in the proposals to go forward with a Treaty Principles Bill.All along, Luxon has maintained that the Government is proceeding with the Bill to honour the coalition agreement.But that is quite specific.It ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    3 days ago
  • An average 219 NZers migrated each day in July

    Kia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, September 11:Annual migration of New Zealanders rose to a record-high 80,963 in the year to the end of July, which is more than double its pre-Covid levels.Two ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • What you’re wanting to win more than anything is The Narrative

    Hubris is sitting down on election day 2016 to watch that pig Trump get his ass handed to him, and watching the New York Times needle hover for a while over Hillary and then move across to Trump where it remains all night to your gathering horror and dismay. You're ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago
  • National’s automated lie machine

    The government has a problem: lots of people want information from it all the time. Information about benefits, about superannuation, ACC coverage and healthcare, taxes, jury service, immigration - and that's just the routine stuff. Responding to all of those queries takes a lot of time and costs a lot ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Christopher Luxon: A Man of “Faith” and “Compassion” Speaks on the Treaty Pr...

    Synopsis: Today - we explore two different realities. One where National lost. And another - which is the one we are living with here. Note: the footnote on increased fees/taxes may be of interest to some readers.Article open.Subscribe nowIt’s an alternate timeline.Yesterday as news broke that the central North Island ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    4 days ago
  • Member’s Day

    Today is a Member's Day. First up is the third reading of Dan Bidois' Fair Trading (Gift Card Expiry) Amendment Bill, which will be followed by the committee stage of Deborah Russell's Family Proceedings (Dissolution for Family Violence) Amendment Bill. This will be followed by the second readings of Katie ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Northern Expressway Boondoggle

    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has been soaring high with his hubris of getting on and building motorways but some uncomfortable realities are starting to creep in. Back in July he announced that the government was pushing on with a Northland Expressway using an “accelerated delivery strategy” The Coalition Government is ...
    4 days ago
  • Never Enough

    However much I'm falling downNever enoughHowever much I'm falling outNever, never enough!Whatever smile I smile the mostNever enoughHowever I smile I smile the mostSongwriters: Robert James Smith / Simon Gallup / Boris Williams / Porl ThompsonToday in Nick’s Kōrero:A death in the Emergency Department at Rotorua Hospital.A sad homecoming and ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago
  • Question Two of The Kākā Project of 2026 for 2050 (TKP 26/50)

    Kia ora.Last month I proposed restarting The Kākā Project work done before the 2023 election as The Kākā Project of 2026 for 2050 (TKP 26/50), aiming to be up and running before the 2025 Local Government elections, and then in a finalised form by the 2026 General Elections.A couple of ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Why is God Obsessed with Spanking?

    Hi,If you’ve read Webworm for a while, you’ll be aware that I’ve spent a lot of time writing about horrific, corrupt megachurches and the shitty men who lead them.And in all of this writing, I think some people have this idea that I hate Christians or Christianity. As I explain ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    4 days ago
  • Inside the public service

    In 2023, there were 63,117 full-time public servants earning, on average, $97,200 a year each. All up, that is a cost to the Government of $6.1 billion a year. It’s little wonder, then, that the public service has become a political whipping boy castigated by the Prime Minister and members ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    4 days ago
  • New Models Show Stronger Atlantic Hurricanes, and More of Them

    This is a re-post from This is Not Cool Here’s an example of some of the best kind of climate reporting, especially in that it relates to impacts that will directly affect the audience. WFLA in Tampa conducted a study in collaboration with the Department of Energy, analyzing trends in ...
    5 days ago
  • Where ever do they find these people?

    A riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma, is how Winston Churchill described the Soviet Union in 1939.  How might the great man have described the 2024 government of New Zealand, do we think? I can't imagine he would have thought them all that mysterious or enigmatic. I think ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago
  • Motorway madness

    How mad is National's obsession with roads? One of their pet projects - a truck highway to Whangārei - is going to eat 10% of our total infrastructure budget for the next 25 years: Official advice from the Infrastructure Commission shows the government could be set to spend 10 ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Our transport planning system is fundamentally broken

    Ever since Wayne Brown became mayor (nearly two years ago now) he’s been wanting to progress an “integrated transport plan” with the government – which sounded a lot like the previous Auckland Transport Alignment Project (ATAP) with just a different name. It seems like a fair bit of work progressed ...
    5 days ago
  • Thou Shalt Not Steal

    And they taught usWhoa-oh, black woman, thou shalt not stealI said, hey, yeah, black man, thou shalt not stealWe're gonna civilise your black barbaric livesAnd we teach you how to kneelBut your history couldn't hide the genocideThe hypocrisy to us was realFor your Jesus said you're supposed to giveThe oppressed ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • How mismanagement, not wind and solar energy, causes blackouts

    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections In February 2021, several severe storms swept across the United States, culminating with one that the Weather Channel unofficially named Winter Storm Uri. In Texas, Uri knocked out power to over 4.5 million homes and 10 million people. Hundreds of Texans died as a ...
    5 days ago
  • The ‘Infra Boys’ Highway to Budget Hell

    Chris Bishop has enthusiastically dubbed himself and Simeon Brown “the Infra Boys”, but they need to take note of the sums around their roading dreams. Photo: Lynn GrievesonMōrena. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Tuesday, September ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Media Link: “AVFA” on the politics of desperation.

    In this podcast Selwyn Manning and I talk about what appears to be a particular type of end-game in the long transition to systemic realignment in international affairs, in which the move to a new multipolar order with different characteristics … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    6 days ago
  • The cost of flying blind

    Just over two years ago, when worries about immediate mass-death from covid had waned, and people started to talk about covid becoming "endemic", I asked various government agencies what work they'd done on the costs of that - and particularly, on the cost of Long Covid. The answer was that ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago
  • Seymour vs The Clergy

    For paid subscribers“Aotearoa is not as malleable as they think,” Lynette wrote last week on Homage to Simeon Brown:In my heart/mind, that phrase ricocheted over the next days, translating out to “We are not so malleable.”It gave me comfort. I always felt that we were given an advantage in New ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    6 days ago
  • Unstoppable Minister McKee

    All smiles, I know what it takes to fool this townI'll do it 'til the sun goes downAnd all through the nighttimeOh, yeahOh, yeah, I'll tell you what you wanna hearLeave my sunglasses on while I shed a tearIt's never the right timeYeah, yeahSong by SiaLast night there was a ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago
  • Could outdoor dining revitalise Queen Street?

    This is a guest post by Ben van Bruggen of The Urban Room,.An earlier version of this post appeared on LinkedIn. All images are by Ben. Have you noticed that there’s almost nowhere on Queen Street that invites you to stop, sit outside and enjoy a coffee, let alone ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    6 days ago
  • Hipkins challenges long-held Labour view Government must stay below 30% of GDP

    Hipkins says when considering tax settings and the size of government, the big question mark is over what happens with the balance between the size of the working-age population and the growing number of Kiwis over the age of 65. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMōrena. Long stories short; here’s ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • Your invite to Webworm Chat (a bit like Reddit)

    Hi,One of the things I love the most about Webworm is, well, you. The community that’s gathered around this lil’ newsletter isn’t something I ever expected when I started writing it four years ago — now the comments section is one of my favourite places on the internet. The comments ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • Seymour’s Treaty bill making Nats nervous

    A delay in reappointing a top civil servant may indicate a growing nervousness within the National Party about the potential consequences of David Seymour’s Treaty Principles Bill. Dave Samuels is waiting for reappointment as the Chief Executive of Te Puni Kokiri, but POLITIK understands that what should have been a ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    6 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #36

    A listing of 34 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, September 1, 2024 thru Sat, September 7, 2024. Story of the week Our Story of the Week is about how peopele are not born stupid but can be fooled ...
    7 days ago
  • Time for a Change

    You act as thoughYou are a blind manWho's crying, crying 'boutAll the virgins that are dyingIn your habitual dreams, you knowSeems you need more sleepBut like a parrot in a flaming treeI know it's pretty hard to seeI'm beginning to wonderIf it's time for a changeSong: Phil JuddThe next line ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • Security Politics in Peripheral Democracies: Excerpt Six.

    The “double shocks” in post Cold War international affairs. The end of the Cold War fundamentally altered the global geostrategic context. In particular, the end of the nuclear “balance of terror” between the USA and USSR, coupled with the relaxation … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    1 week ago
  • Buried deep

    Here's a bike on Manchester St, Feilding. I took this photo on Friday night after a very nice dinner at the very nice Vietnamese restaurant, Saigon, on Manchester Street.I thought to myself, Manchester Street? Bicycle? This could be the very spot.To recap from an earlier edition: on a February night ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago
  • Security Politics in Peripheral Democracies, Excerpt Five.

    Military politics as a distinct “partial regime.” Notwithstanding their peripheral status, national defense offers the raison d’être of the combat function, which their relative vulnerability makes apparent, so military forces in small peripheral democracies must be very conscious of events … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    1 week ago
  • Leadership for Dummies

    If you’re going somewhere, do you maybe take a bit of an interest in the place? Read up a bit on the history, current events, places to see - that sort of thing? Presumably, if you’re taking a trip somewhere, it’s for a reason. But what if you’re going somewhere ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • Home again

    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on anything you may have missed. Share Read more ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago
  • Dead even tie for hottest August ever

    Long stories short, here’s the top six news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above between Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer:The month of August was 1.49˚C warmer than pre-industrial levels, tying with 2023 for the warmest August ever, according ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • The Hoon around the week to Sept 7

    The podcast above of the weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers on Thursday night features co-hosts and talking about the week’s news with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on the latest climate science on rising temperatures and the debate about how to responde to climate disinformation; and special guest ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Have We an Infrastructure Deficit?

    An Infrastructure New Zealand report says we are keeping up with infrastructure better than we might have thought from the grumbling. But the challenge of providing for the future remains.I was astonished to learn that the quantity of our infrastructure has been keeping up with economic growth. Your paper almost ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    1 week ago
  • Councils reject racism

    Last month, National passed a racist law requiring local councils to remove their Māori wards, or hold a referendum on them at the 2025 local body election. The final councils voted today, and the verdict is in: an overwhelming rejection. Only two councils out of 45 supported National's racist agenda ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 week ago
  • Homage to Simeon Brown

    Open to all - happy weekend ahead, friends.Today I just want to be petty. It’s the way I imagine this chap is -Not only as a political persona. But his real-deal inner personality, in all its glory - appears to be pure pettiness & populist driven.Sometimes I wonder if Simeon ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    1 week ago
  • Government of deceit

    When National cut health spending and imposed a commissioner on Te Whatu Ora, they claimed that it was necessary because the organisation was bloated and inefficient, with "14 layers of management between the CEO and the patient". But it turns out they were simply lying: Health Minister Shane Reti’s ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 week ago
  • The professionals actually think and act like our Government has no fiscal crisis at all

    Treasury staff at work: The demand for a new 12-year Government bond was so strong, Treasury decided to double the amount of bonds it sold. Photo: Lynn GrievesonMōrena. Long stories short; here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Friday, September ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Weekly Roundup 6-September-2024

    Welcome to another Friday and another roundup of stories that caught our eye this week. As always, this and every post is brought to you by the Greater Auckland crew. If you like our work and you’d like to see more of it, we invite you to join our regular ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    1 week ago

  • Government eliminates $190 million in trade barriers to boost the economy

    The Government has successfully removed trade barriers affecting nearly $190 million worth of exports to help grow the economy, Minister for Trade and Agriculture Todd McClay today announced.  “In the past year, we have resolved 14 Non Tariff Barriers (NTBs), returning significant value to kiwi exporters. These efforts directly boost our ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 hours ago
  • Reo Māori the ‘beating heart’ of Aotearoa New Zealand

    From private business to the Paris Olympics, reo Māori is growing with the success of New Zealanders, says Minister for Māori Development Tama Potaka. “I’m joining New Zealanders across the country in celebrating this year’s Te Wiki o te Reo Māori – Māori Language Week, which has a big range ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Need and value at forefront of public service delivery

    New Cabinet policy directives will ensure public agencies prioritise public services on the basis of need and award Government contracts on the basis of public value, Minister for the Public Service Nicola Willis says. “Cabinet Office has today issued a circular to central government organisations setting out the Government’s expectations ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Minister to attend Police Ministers Council Meeting

    Police Minister Mark Mitchell will join with Australian Police Ministers and Commissioners at the Police Ministers Council meeting (PMC) today in Melbourne. “The council is an opportunity to come together to discuss a range of issues, gain valuable insights on areas of common interest, and different approaches towards law enforcement ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • New Bill to crack down on youth vaping

    The coalition Government has introduced legislation to tackle youth vaping, Associate Health Minister Casey Costello announced today. “The Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products Amendment Bill (No 2) is aimed at preventing youth vaping.  “While vaping has contributed to a significant fall in our smoking rates, the rise in youth vaping ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Interest in agricultural and horticultural products regulatory review welcomed

    Regulation Minister David Seymour, Environment Minister Penny Simmonds, and Food Safety Minister Andrew Hoggard have welcomed interest in the agricultural and horticultural products regulatory review. The review by the Ministry for Regulation is looking at how to speed up the process to get farmers and growers access to the safe, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Bill to allow online charity lotteries passes first reading

    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government is moving at pace to ensure lotteries for charitable purposes are allowed to operate online permanently. Charities fundraising online, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, Auckland Rescue Helicopter Trust and local hospices will continue to do ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Tax exempt threshold changes to benefit startups

    Technology companies are among the startups which will benefit from increases to current thresholds of exempt employee share schemes, Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins and Revenue Minister Simon Watts say. Tax exempt thresholds for the schemes are increasing as part of the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2024-25, Emergency ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Getting the healthcare you need, when you need it

    The path to faster cancer treatment, an increase in immunisation rates, shorter stays in emergency departments and quick assessment and treatments when you are sick has been laid out today. Health Minister Dr Shane Reti has revealed details of how the ambitious health targets the Government has set will be ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Targeted supports to accelerate reading

    The coalition Government is delivering targeted and structured literacy supports to accelerate learning for struggling readers. From Term 1 2025, $33 million of funding for Reading Recovery and Early Literacy Support will be reprioritised to interventions which align with structured approaches to teaching. “Structured literacy will change the way children ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Survivors invited to Abuse in Care national apology

    With two months until the national apology to survivors of abuse in care, expressions of interest have opened for survivors wanting to attend. “The Prime Minister will deliver a national apology on Tuesday 12 November in Parliament. It will be a very significant day for survivors, their families, whānau and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Rangatahi inspire at Ngā Manu Kōrero final

    Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi, engari he toa takitini kē - My success is not mine alone but is the from the strength of the many. Aotearoa New Zealand’s top young speakers are an inspiration for all New Zealanders to learn more about the depth and beauty conveyed ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Driving structured literacy in schools

    The coalition Government is driving confidence in reading and writing in the first years of schooling. “From the first time children step into the classroom, we’re equipping them and teachers with the tools they need to be brilliant in literacy. “From 1 October, schools and kura with Years 0-3 will receive ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Labour’s misleading information is disappointing

    Labour’s misinformation about firearms law is dangerous and disappointing, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee says.   “Labour and Ginny Andersen have repeatedly said over the past few days that the previous Labour Government completely banned semi-automatic firearms in 2019 and that the Coalition Government is planning to ‘reintroduce’ them.   ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Govt takes action on mpox response, widens access to vaccine

    The Government is taking immediate action on a number of steps around New Zealand’s response to mpox, including improving access to vaccine availability so people who need it can do so more easily, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti and Associate Health Minister David Seymour announced today. “Mpox is obviously a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Next steps agreed for Treaty Principles Bill

    Associate Justice Minister David Seymour says Cabinet has agreed to the next steps for the Treaty Principles Bill. “The Treaty Principles Bill provides an opportunity for Parliament, rather than the courts, to define the principles of the Treaty, including establishing that every person is equal before the law,” says Mr Seymour. “Parliament ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Government unlocking potential of AI

    Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins today announced a programme to drive Artificial Intelligence (AI) uptake among New Zealand businesses. “The AI Activator will unlock the potential of AI for New Zealand businesses through a range of support, including access to AI research experts, technical assistance, AI tools and resources, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Government releases Wairoa flood review findings

    The independent rapid review into the Wairoa flooding event on 26 June 2024 has been released, Environment Minister Penny Simmonds, Local Government Minister Simeon Brown and Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell announced today. “We welcome the review’s findings and recommendations to strengthen Wairoa's resilience against future events,” Ms ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Promoting faster payment times for government

    The Government is sending a clear message to central government agencies that they must prioritise paying invoices in a timely manner, Small Business and Manufacturing Minister Andrew Bayly says. Data released today promotes transparency by publishing the payment times of each central government agency. This data will be published quarterly ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Acknowledgement to Kīngi Tuheitia speech

    E te māngai o te Whare Pāremata, kua riro māku te whakaputa i te waka ki waho moana. E te Pirimia tēnā koe.Mr Speaker, it is my privilege to take this adjournment kōrero forward.  Prime Minister – thank you for your leadership. Taupiri te maunga Waikato te awa Te Wherowhero ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Interim fix to GST adjustment rules to support businesses

    Inland Revenue can begin processing GST returns for businesses affected by a historic legislative drafting error, Revenue Minister Simon Watts says. “Inland Revenue has become aware of a legislative drafting error in the GST adjustment rules after changes were made in 2023 which were meant to simplify the process. This ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Strong uptake for cervical screening self-test

    More than 80 per cent of New Zealand women being tested have opted for a world-leading self-test for cervical screening since it became available a year ago. Minister of Health Dr Shane Reti and Associate Minister Casey Costello, in her responsibility for Women’s Health, say it’s fantastic to have such ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Ministry for Regulation’s first Strategic Intentions document sets ambitious direction

    Regulation Minister David Seymour welcomes the Ministry for Regulation’s first Strategic Intentions document, which sets out how the Ministry will carry out its work and deliver on its purpose. “I have set up the Ministry for Regulation with three tasks. One, to cut existing red tape with sector reviews. Two, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Māori Education Advisory Group established

    The Education Minister has established a Māori Education Ministerial Advisory Group made up of experienced practitioners to help improve outcomes for Māori learners. “This group will provide independent advice on all matters related to Māori education in both English medium and Māori medium settings. It will focus on the most impactful ways we can lift ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Government welcomes findings of NZ Superannuation Fund review

    The Government has welcomed the findings of the recent statutory review into the Guardians of New Zealand Superannuation and the New Zealand Superannuation Fund, Minister of Finance Nicola Willis says. The 5-yearly review, conducted on behalf of Treasury and tabled in Parliament today, found the Guardians of New Zealand Superannuation ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • First of five new Hercules aircraft takes flight

    Defence Minister Judith Collins today welcomed the first of five new C-130J-30 Hercules to arrive in New Zealand at a ceremony at the Royal New Zealand Air Force’s Base Auckland, Whenuapai. “This is an historic day for our New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) and our nation. The new Hercules fleet ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Have your say on suicide prevention

    Today, September 10 is World Suicide Prevention Day, a time to reflect on New Zealand’s confronting suicide statistics, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “Every death by suicide is a tragedy – a tragedy that affects far too many of our families and communities in New Zealand. We must do ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
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  • Action to grow the rural health workforce

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