Time for cross party accord on super

Written By: - Date published: 1:24 pm, December 12th, 2016 - 87 comments
Categories: labour, national, superannuation - Tags: , ,

English is not making the same stupid pledge as Key, to let superannuation consume the future. Good. (Time to start repayments to the Cullen fund while you’re at it Bill.)

Labour campaigned on restructuring super (raising the age of eligibility) in 2011 and 2014. But Andrew Little abandoned that policy, leaving clear decks for 2017. So Labour could go populist and oppose any move from National to do so. But I hope that they do not.

With suitable protections for vulnerable people, such as physical labourers, the age of eligibility for universal superannuation needs to rise.

English’s position creates an opportunity. Time for a cross party accord. Take super off the table as a political football and solve the damn problem. For the good of NZ.


For a counter view see I/S at No Right Turn: Opportunity knocks.


87 comments on “Time for cross party accord on super ”

  1. Enough is Enough 1

    “With suitable protections for vulnerable people, such as physical labourers, the age of eligibility for universal superannuation needs to rise”

    Bullshit it does.

    That is the type of cost cutting statement a classic Tory government would implement.

    It needs to be funded properly. That isn’t done through cutting costs and austerity measures.

  2. Sam C 2

    Couldn’t agree more.

    This is too important to be used as a political football next year – all parties need to have the same position; that the universal super eligibility age needs to be subject to some rigorous examination.

  3. johnm 3

    You want to save money? Simple! Don’t give Super to the rich who don’t need it! The likes of Brash, key, politicians and rich business types and property speculators who have stashed huge capital gains away in Trusts and banks.

    It’s not rocket science leave the ordinary bloke alone!

    100% Enough is Enough 🙂

    • Sam C 3.1

      So, what are you suggesting? Means testing? That’ll be a real vote winner.

      • Cinny 3.1.1

        Lololz you know it. Maybe means testing LESS the family home, would be a fair way around it.

        Means testing is not popular with the oldies

        • Carolyn_nth 3.1.1.1

          means testing without taking into account the family home is surely unfair to old people with savings but who don’t own property – and there are a lot of renting pensioners.

          Edit: I’m against means testing for super. Costs a lot in admin. There’ll always be those who try to hide assets/finances in order to sneak in under the bar. Best to just deal with it by taxing higher incomes.

          But UBI would be better.

          • Cinny 3.1.1.1.1

            good points Carolyn re renting means testing and admin costs etc

            UBI, of course, once again, it’s such a good solution for so many issues, UBI, low admin costs and everything. Simple, sensible and fair. UBI yes please.

        • Ovid 3.1.1.2

          So should I stop putting aside 8% of my income in Kiwisaver and drop back down to 3 if it’s just going to be six of one and half a dozen of the other? Might as well just spend that money now if it’s going to be means tested in retirement.

          Universality is important. It’s a demonstration of a UBI for starters.

    • Well, that’s what means-testing it is, and that’s as much of a third rail as raising the age. The Left favours means-testing, the Right favours pushing it back so that less people qualify in the first place.

      Andrew Little supported means-testing for a while, until he pulled it back in a rather ungracious fashion. I think of all the options to reduce the cost, that’s the least worst one, but it does put a significant administrative burden onto the Super system. (of course, structuring a UBI to take over from NZ Super would effectively integrate means testing into the system)

      • alwyn 3.2.1

        “the Right favours pushing it back so that less people qualify in the first place.”.

        How do you come to that conclusion?
        The last time they came out swinging on this subject both the Labour Party and the Green Party were in favour of raising the age of eligibility. I know Little then threw his toys out of the cot but have the Green Party also done so?
        National on the other hand refused to go with their U-turn and refused to raise the age.

        Do you somehow class National as being on the Left and Labour and the Greens as being on the Right?
        No it can’t be as simple as that. National, quite correctly in my view don’t want to asset test it. They do that in Australia and it is a grossly unfair approach. It pays you not to save anything over about $375k.

        • I don’t recall the Greens ever talking about raising the age of eligibility, although I suppose it’s possible I missed it. The current policy is that they support NZ Super and will move to peg the benefits to inflation-adjusted cost of living.

          Labour has variously talked about raising the age of eligibility and means-testing. Most serious talk has been around means-testing.

          Peter Dunne has also proposed raising the age.

          What English refused to rule out was raising the age.

          As for means testing, there’s ways to do it that are relatively fair and like you mention, ways that simply discourage savings. Probably the simplest way is to just look at direct income and capital gains, and simply abate Super by income. (so it effectively acts as a minimum guaranteed income) That provides a certain incentive to actually retire, doesn’t punish savings at all, and is comparatively simple to administer, and should catch most of the people who really don’t need access to NZ Super without unduly punishing people who worked hard and saved.

        • Peter 3.2.1.2

          The problem with means testing is how often you do it.

          To do a means test just once at the qualifying age will not work.
          Someone who is a pauper on Friday may well win Lotto on Saturday or inherit on Monday.

          So you need to repeat the means test on every individual how often?
          Monthly? Six monthly? Yearly?

          A highly expensive exercise in offices, staff, mileage, paper and ink.

          • alwyn 3.2.1.2.1

            I may be wrong but as far as I remember you had to notify the Australians whenever anything changed. Anything!
            My wife and I were forced to apply for the Australian Super when we turned 65 in New Zealand. We had worked there for some years. It was a 46 page document to fill in!
            As we knew would happen we weren’t eligible. We were well above the threshold for getting any payments from Australia. The New Zealand department made us apply though. A complete and utter waste of time.
            Luckily they haven’t made us do it again. I don’t know whether the rules have changed or whether they forgot us.

    • saveNZ 3.3

      Only Johnm on paper the super rich don’t have any money…. but also don’t forget we have so many migrant ‘chefs’, ‘farm workers’ and ‘fruit pickers’ coming in, how much tax are they really able to pay on minimum wages? How soon before their backs give out and they end up on ACC?

      I’d say migration is more corporate welfare so they can get cheap workers in or in many cases are offered bribes to hire them, but from Day 1, it probably costs the state in health, accommodation supplements, ACC and so forth, and then the more skilled Kiwis presumably have to support them, and the local unemployed workers that never got the job in the first place.

      In short the whole system is broken and telling those already paying to pay more, work longer and harder, well my guess is that most tax paying Kiwis get angry at the thought of it all…. especially when brainac politicians suggest those that save get penalised yet again.

  4. DoublePlusGood 4

    Just actually tax capital, income and wealth properly and there is no problem affording superannuation. The money is easily there to fund a UBI, let alone only super, you just need to make sure it gets from those people and organisations accumulating it to those that need it.
    No need to raise the super age whatsoever.

    • Whispering Kate 4.1

      Are you discussing a Financial Transaction Tax here? I hear it suggested often enough, why won’t any Party want to take this up for discussion.

      • saveNZ 4.1.1

        Exactly, whispering Kate??? A transactions tax would take from those who actually have enough money to spend on stuff and in particular take from financial institutions.

        You have places like the UK, which has capital gains taxes, stamp duty taxes, $17.5% VAT, inheritance tax, taxes on taxes (even for a TV licence which they religiously patrol!) but somehow being the financial capital of Europe have never got around to taxing the financial institutions at the same levels…. hence the rise of extreme bonuses…. $50 million, $100 million all carefully arranged to pay as little tax as possible using tax havens around the world and financial individuals and institutions that gain more and more power to lobby to decrease their taxes by loopholes and increase other sector’s taxes that affect them the least.

        P.S. In spite of tremendous taxes on property (and many other sectors) in the UK, like NZ they have found that local people can’t actually afford to buy a house on their wages due to opening their market up to the world to buy their property as ‘gold brick’ investments, often through tax havens while locals are taxed to death. (and afterwards).

        • Draco T Bastard 4.1.1.1

          P.S. In spite of tremendous taxes on property (and many other sectors) in the UK, like NZ they have found that local people can’t actually afford to buy a house on their wages due to opening their market up to the world to buy their property as ‘gold brick’ investments, often through tax havens while locals are taxed to death. (and afterwards).

          Yep. Need to ban offshore ownership.

    • You’re correct that a Capital Gains Tax would likely cover the current cost of NZ Super, (assuming it takes in similar revenue to VUW’s modelled proposal) and leave you a few billion to put into the Super Fund. I’d have to see some modelling on projected growth in costs with boomers coming into the system now as to how much it’ll cost in say, a decade to see if it’s sustainable to fund super that way.

      If you wanted to repeal Super in favour of a true UBI that fulfills the same role with similar payouts, you would need between $7 billion and $30 billion extra in revenue beyond the CGT. (the roughly $30 billion figure is for a UBI with payouts identical to NZ Super) A transactions tax is estimated to be worth only about $1 billion in revenue. I factored in a Carbon Tax to the equation and only just made it balance out with a $20,000 UBI and flat tax reform in modelling. I would presume that if you want to fund a UBI entirely on wealth taxes, you would need to consider either an estate tax or an automation tax to fully fund the system.

  5. Ad 5

    English should simply re-start payments to NZSuper and take the whole of superannuation off the election table for good.

    National already has most of those seniors votes locked in and there’s no need to disturb that.

    • Draco T Bastard 5.1

      English should simply re-start payments to NZSuper and take the whole of superannuation off the election table for good.

      Except that even with full payments being made over the last 8 years and ongoing it wouldn’t have been enough.

      • Ad 5.1.1

        It would be enough to take the edge off the liability which is all it was ever designed to do.

        • Draco T Bastard 5.1.1.1

          Which means that it would require something else which mean that the whole of superannuation would not be off the election table for good.

  6. Phil 6

    Time for a cross party accord.

    There’s a reasonably compelling argument to be made that the Superannuation Accord of 1993 simply papered over the already obvious cracks in our system, and made the problem worse today.

  7. saveNZ 7

    I think you need to solve the immigration problem before you start to take away more rights of tax payers…. people pay tax for health, super, education and so forth. If the governments want to push thousands of people into NZ each month and then allow migrant parents to come in and take up super within 10 years then I think you have not only gross unfairness to the existing tax payers who’s goal posts have been widened, but social disruption on your hands aka Trump.

    As for getting Labour and Greens involved – like the unitary plan – stay out of it. If English wants to increase the age of super and betray workers, go for it!

    I’d like to see the opposite, the left government actually wanting to have a UBI and have minimum living standards kept, not the opposite!

    • Cinny 7.1

      “migrant parents to come in and take up super within 10 years”

      that sure does need to be addressed, that pisses heaps of people off, right wing, left wing, multi wing, no wing, it pisses people off. Especially when the kids up and leave once their parents have the super, thanks lax immigration laws for looking after NZ Citizens.. not.

  8. saveNZ 8

    P.S. Probably just a Natz ploy to get Labour/Greens to agree to agree to cross party talks to betray workers on Super and then hey presto, who doesn’t turn out again to vote in next years election, Labour voters or Natz voters??

  9. Jenny Kirk 9

    There are plenty of options to avoid superannuation becoming a huge burden – renewing the payments to the Super Fund,and increasing the numbers of years immigrants have to live in NZ before qualifying for it, for starters.

    Increasing the age of superannuation will be very unfair on those who are made redundant in their late 50s/early 60s and cannot get another job, people who work in a number of low-income jobs to make a reasonable living, those who become too ill or incapacitated to work in their older years, and so on.

    • Not to mention there are very valid reasons that we should be considering the possibility of making it eligible to younger people in certain circumstances (eg. for Māori) if we’re going to continue on Super with settings somewhat similar to today.

  10. Sanctuary 10

    How about we just accept that we’ve made a deal with hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders that they’ll get super at 65, that for most of them it will be their sole source of income, and just fund it properly? How about we just accept that we will be paying higher taxes for a couple of decades? And since when did socialists so easily consign the principle of universality to the rubbish bin? Jesus wept.

    • Draco T Bastard 10.1

      And since when did socialists so easily consign the principle of universality to the rubbish bin?

      Socialists didn’t. The problem is that we don’t have a socialist party any more and even socialists don’t really know how an economy works (the RWNJs are far worse of course).

    • Ross 10.2

      The principle of universality can be maintained at the same time as the age of eligibility is increased. There is nothing magical or mystical about the age of 65. Many people work past the age of 65.

      • GregJ 10.2.1

        Which would suggest something more sophisticated is probably required. UBI plus various options on taking up superannuation at differing ages (tax, rebates etc. etc.) – that would have the advantage of also considering that the changing nature of work might mean people “retire” at an earlier age as well as later ages. Life expectancy is going up so unless we’ve screwed the planet so thoroughly civilization collapses (or we go extinct!) we need to start applying much more sophisticated models to income, income distribution and allocation.

  11. saveNZ 11

    If English is so worried about Superannuation, they clearly have the numbers to raise the Super age now with The Maori Party, and United Future. National created most of the Super problem so now it’s time for them to take sole responsibility for their poor economic management, outrageous debt levels, stopping Cullen fund contributions, tax cuts….

    And since National under Muldoon canned the Super of the day, and stole the money…

    Take responsibility for stealing our wealth National! And flooding our social welfare system with lazy migration for future tax payers to sort out and pay for.

    And don’t come to labour to ‘help you solve it’ so you can hide your responsibility and muddy the waters so voters don’t have a clue what the hell just went on.

    • Carolyn_nth 11.2

      I think Māori Party would be against raising the super age – Māori on average don’t live as long as Pakeha.

      • BM 11.2.1

        Did you know if you filter out deaths under the age of 5, the average life expectancy for women is 89 and men around 87?

      • alwyn 11.2.2

        That isn’t a sensible argument I’m afraid.

        The purpose of National Super is to provide people with an income in their old age so that they can live out there lives without being in penury.
        It is not something you get because you paid into the scheme and it isn’t something where everyone is to get the same amount.
        When you die you don’t need superannuation any longer. You don’t have any living costs.

        It is exactly the same as any other form of insurance. You don’t have anything to complain about if you never have a fire and never get to collect on your fire insurance. You are in the same situation with super. If you don’t live to an age when you can’t work you don’t need the super payments.

        • BM 11.2.2.1

          According to experts, my partner was told at her age, she’s got to get together enough savings to last to at least 95.

          That’s 30 years, I have no idea how countries are going to afford to pay for all these elderly folk.

          • greg 11.2.2.1.1

            its nationals fault BM

          • alwyn 11.2.2.1.2

            It’s a transfer payment. It doesn’t actually cost very much to operate. It is only taking money from one group in the population and giving it to another.
            Even in about 30 years it is only going to be about 6.7% of GDP if we go on as we are. It is currently under 5%

          • saveNZ 11.2.2.1.3

            BM – well National are adding more and more old folks with migration – so maybe National’s plan is to destroy super once and for all. After all similar to asset sales, you run it down, make a lot of additional problems, and then low and behold you tell everyone it’s not working – it must be sold, changed, privatised!

            And don’t forget the rest of the welfare state, health – education – social services – can’t afford that either with another 10+% rise in population numbers mostly by migration but little change in GDP per capita, flat productivity – ding-a-ling – we are getting nothing from migration apart from government debt levels increasing 6 fold under National to pay for it, a housing crisis and impending disaster for superannuation.

            • Zid 11.2.2.1.3.1

              Of course, why didn’t I think that National is trying to destroy super, it’s obvious….

  12. Cinny 12

    We should start contributing back to the super fund.

    Immigration laws should be overhauled, re the parents and ten years rule, actually i wonder how much super is paid annually to the ’10 year parents of immigrants’

    Super is sweet FA, increase the super payments to the oldies, or offer free doctors visits (even if it’s just 12 free visits to the Dr a year), how about a pensioners discount on the power and rates? We need to look after the oldies, and the outgoing government has been neglecting them for way to long, way to long.

    The outgoing government isn’t too keen on any cross party talks, for a number of issues and it sucks. The next government I hope will be open to cross party talks on any subject, am sick of the division on pressing issues from national, they spend too much time trying to win an argument rather than helping those whom need it.

    I’m not sure how i feel about the retirement age, i worry that some will lose their jobs to close to retirement age and have massive difficulty getting another job in their older years. Maybe some sort of government incentive for employers to hire older people? Maybe the government could employ some older people whom are looking for a few years work before retiring?

    Interesting thread, super does need to be addressed and fast

    • Draco T Bastard 12.1

      Super is sweet FA

      You do understand that super is already the largest part of the social welfare spend don’t you?

      • Andrea 12.1.1

        You do understand that superannuation is about the only part of ‘trickle down’ into the local economy that even part-way works? Redistribution to people who certainly aren’t all luxuriating in having ‘a little bit of extra.’ Barely scraping through, mostly, then spending locally in useful community services (eg medical centres).

        And, for those trusting to some sort of rip-off retirement scheme – well, the governments of any shade of greed will have to do a LOT to give all Kiwis financial training, keep the ‘advisers’ under control, and actually run a decent economy so stocks, shares, savings, pay out more than the less than adult minumum.

        Oh. And keep their kleptomania under control and out of people’s pockets and dreams. Here’s looking at you, National, with your GST hikes.

        Plus – if local body councils could remember that heaps of people may have homes but they sure aren’t pulling in $50k+ a year. So restraint, Big Spenders. Restraint.

      • Cinny 12.1.2

        Yes I do, and there are many people whom need it, but I see many oldies struggling, oldies getting sick rather than turning on the heater for fear of a massive power bill. Oldies whom are sick but unable to afford the Dr’s. These things trouble me greatly

        Our country has been financially mismanaged for way way to long.

    • greg 12.2

      the current rate super is set with the expectation you own your own home debt free
      and you can save fat chance of that for the none boomer’s

      • Cinny 12.2.1

        I didn’t know that Greg, so it’s set up with expectations from another era when it was possible. Time to change things to make it up to date with the current environment of low home ownership and high debt, shouldn’t be this way but it is at the moment.

  13. Draco T Bastard 13

    (Time to start repayments to the Cullen fund while you’re at it Bill.)

    And what will that do?

    Saving money is a fundamental misunderstanding of what the economy truly is.

    What we actually need to be doing is replacing the productivity that’s lost from people retiring with new productivity. We can do this either through an increasing population or through increasing productivity. Continuous exponential increase in population is unsustainable and it causes severe social problems which means that it’s an impractical solution. That leaves us with only increasing productivity.

    Now, people are going to tell me that’s what savings are for as they fund investment in new technologies but that’s not actually working as our productivity simply increasing enough and the benefits of any increase in productivity is going to the rich bludgers both onshore and offshore as the decreasing share of income going to workers shows.

    Basically, the interest and dividends that are returned to those ‘savings’ exceed the increasing productivity in the first place and the increase in productivity that it produces isn’t enough to cover the loss of productivity of the people retiring.

    We need to develop our economy and we need to do it massively. We need far more automation than we have and we need to decrease our imports of expensive items such as computers. We need to shift away from being an agricultural economy into a high tech economy that also produces enough food to feed ourselves (producing enough to feed ourselves would free up ~100k people to do other, far more worthwhile, stuff).

    To do that means that we have to shift away from the capitalist free-market which is actively preventing us from doing what’s needed.

  14. Ross 14

    The apparently apolitical Retirement Commissioner has consistently stated that the age of eligibility for super needs to rise, albeit gradually. She states that 18 OECD countries have raised the age of entitlement for super to over 65. An accord is an option that should be seriously considered.

    The following is from economists:

    If there are no changes to superannuation, the Treasury has estimated that growth in healthcare spending would need to be limited to 7 billion dollars by 2031 if government spending is to remain about 45% of GDP. The health budget would need to grow at half the pace it has in the past. This obviously has implications for access to healthcare services. We must ask ourselves if this is a trade-off we are willing to make. Relying on finding savings from healthcare is a risky strategy. International experience shows that making lasting changes to the growth in spending on healthcare is extremely difficult. The changes would need to be radical.

    A far easier and more certain way would be to control the cost of superannuation. One approach would be to target eligibility, based on some form of means testing. While New Zealand is lauded for the simplicity of its universal system, it may need to be looked at. But if that is too radical or complex a change, there are two other, even simpler, options that ought to be considered. One of these options is to increase the age of eligibility to New Zealand Superannuation from 65 to, say, 67. Other countries have gone down this track, recognising ever-increasing healthy life expectancy.
    People would need to be given time to adjust to such a policy change. If people were given 10 years to prepare, and a higher age of eligibility were introduced in 2022, it would reduce the number of eligible people by over 100,000 a year. This is equivalent to 2 billion dollars a year.  But, while helpful, it only shifts the budget pressure out by a few years; it does not change the rate of growth.

    A more meaningful change would be to limit the growth in the amount people get paid. Currently the rate of New Zealand Superannuation cannot fall below 65% of the average wage. But this floor could be lowered to a more affordable level.

    http://nzier.org.nz/publication/superannuation-dilemma
    http://www.interest.co.nz/personal-finance/83137/diane-maxwell-making-nz-super-sustainable-increasing-age-eligibility-means

    • Nic the NZer 14.1

      Quoting from such authority positions is fine but some attention should be payed to the caveats.

      ” Treasury has estimated that growth in healthcare spending would need to be limited to 7 billion dollars by 2031 if government spending is to remain about 45% of GDP.”

      Treasury forecasts have a margin of error of Billions of dollers over about year. How much confidence should we have in an estimate for 15 years hence anyway. And since when was it a goal for govt healthcare spending to be about 45% of GDP anyway? Why is that a target. I don’t think there is much good in restructuring retirement in persuit of arbitrary account ratios which we are highly uncertain about anyway.

      • alwyn 14.1.1

        “And since when was it a goal for govt healthcare spending to be about 45% of GDP anyway? “.
        It never has been. You have misread the report.
        It is talking about the TOTAL Government spending, not the spending on health care alone.
        Even in the US, where healthcare costs are totally out of control, healthcare spending is only about 16% of GDP. That is probably twice as much as most developed countries.

        • Nic the NZer 14.1.1.1

          So its a goal for govt spending to not be more than 45% of GDP then? Where do these magic fractions originate from?

  15. greg 15

    its a bit rich of national that it wants to put up the retirement age given they sabotaged any attempt in last 30 year to build a saving base this is there mess. labour campaigned in 2011 on raising the retirement age but the national voting property owning baby boomer’s said no way . IAM GEN X we are paying our taxes to the baby boomer’s while being ripped off shafted screwed over on the cost housing, cost of living cost ,record house hold debt , again the main beneficialness the property owning baby boomer’s
    well lets means test the bastards tax there capital. National wants to strip us of our retirement while the boomer’s live on the pigs back IT is not good enough…f english

  16. alwyn 16

    Their is an entirely logical, and sensible way to get a cross party accord on National Super.
    All that would be required is for the other parties to accept the fact that they were wrong in claiming that we can’t afford the current system. We can, without any problems continue with a universal system, at about the current level of payment and paid from the age of 65. After all, even at its peak it will not be as high as the average transfer levels in the OECD countries.

    It’ll never happen of course. Very few politicians are as pragmatic as John Key was where there was no ideology behind his actions but merely a pragmatic approach to doing whatever worked.
    The current politicians on the left are not like that of course. If National is for something they are against it. Look at Little Andy with the flag debate. He opposed the change because Key was in favour, even though what Key had proposed was exactly what the Labour Party policy was in 2014.

    By the way, is there anyone here who claims that we can’t afford transfer payments for National Super but that we can afford the vastly higher amounts that a UBI would entail? Come on admit it, and admit that you are not being logical in your beliefs.

    The only thing that is wrong with the current system is that they haven’t scrapped the Cullen fund. It is totally unnecessary and should be dumped before idiots from some party in Government gets their grubby little hands on it and blow it on some of their crackpot hobbies.

    The Cullen fund was set up to satisfy Michael’s loathing of letting taxpayers have the excess funds he was hoovering up with his far to high tax rates. If investments make sense you make them. If they don’t make sense don’t go near them. You don’t do it because you have a fixed size pile of money to tie up or because it gives you the warm fuzzies.

    • Ad 16.1

      The Cullen Fund was set up to decrease liability of future taxpayers and governments for superannuation entitlements. If English does what he always should have done and restores full payments to it, the NZSuperfund will do what it’s designed to do and take some of the load off future governments.

      The only thing wrong with the SuperFund is that it hasn’t had a consistent advertising campaign to remind entitled people like yourself that it is the only reason New Zealand has one of the lowest levels of poverty of elderly people in the entire world. And that is a good thing.

      If you aren’t getting the warm fuzzes, hey Alwyn here’s an idea: just you give all your back.

      • alwyn 16.1.1

        I fear you don’t understand how it works.
        The only way to get back the funds is to sell the assets owned by the fund to someone. Would you allow that?
        However the important thing to remember is that the only way people who no longer work can have things to consume is if someone else, who continues to work and produce things does without the production of their labour. You can’t actually eat money you know.
        If we really wanted to do something we would have to invest in foreign assets. Then, at some later date, we could sell them and spend the funds on imports to supply people who aren’t working. Are you willing to propose this?
        It is also crazy to let pollies anywhere near such a pool of money. Look at some of the ideas the Green Party come up with on how to “invest” the fund.

        • Ad 16.1.1.1

          Oh no, I get it. It’s just you that has the problem.

          What you do, when you get your Superannuation payments free from the taxpayer, is go to your bank, withdraw the whole thing, and reverse the payment back to whence it came. We will all thank you I am sure. Go ahead and start a trend.

          If you think you can’t eat money, try living without it.

          “Pollies” are nowhere hear that NZSuper money, of course. But I am sure you knew that. Across the House they actually had some collective wisdom at the time they set it up. If you really needed to, go back to the Hansard debates from the time and you will see all of your little problems well considered.

          • alwyn 16.1.1.1.1

            All parties change their minds of course. That is why we will never get a permanent consensus.

            Remember when the Green Party said things like
            “The Green Party supports the universal provision of superannuation for everyone aged 65 and over, paid at not less than 65% of the average net ordinary time wage to couples and 60% of that amount to single people. ”
            and
            “The Greens opposed their (Labour) solution because we don’t believe building up a large fund and investing it on the overseas share and bond markets is the best way to pay for future superannuation. In fact we regard Dr Cullen’s prescription as down right dangerous.”
            and
            “We believe the current “pay as you go” system is sustainable and affordable. We are not alone, Retirement Commissioner Colin Blair says that New Zealand has one of the simplest and most efficient tax funded retirement pensions in the world. ”
            They really did you know.
            https://home.greens.org.nz/speeches/green-alternative-cullen-super-fund

            A terrible loss to New Zealand was the only really sane member of the Green Party.

            Of course the politicians aren’t getting near the Cullen fund – YET. They want to though by telling them where they are to invest the money. They want to do the same with peoples KiwiSaver funds too. I imagine they will do it if the lunatic parties ever get near the Treasury benches.

            What do you think these press releases were demanding?
            https://blog.greens.org.nz/2015/06/17/will-the-super-fund-follow-its-own-advice-and-divest-from-coal/
            https://blog.greens.org.nz/2016/08/30/how-to-earn-good-returns-on-your-kiwisaver/
            They want to set the rules of course.

            As for your silly statement “If you think you can’t eat money, try living without it. ”
            Of course you can eat what you BUY with it. Money itself is indigestible.
            Look at the people in places like Venezuela where they might have money but there is nothing to buy.
            Worse still, look at Zimbabwe where they tried the Green Party recommended money printing campaign.

          • alwyn 16.1.1.1.2

            “Go ahead and start a trend”.
            Why on earth should I be the one doing such a thing? I am in favour of a universal system with no means testing, and therefore I am entitled to take the money.
            You are the one who doesn’t like that. Will you confirm that you do not accept it, if you are over 65, or that you will never accept it in the future if you are under that age?
            You don’t get to set the parameters of MY actions.
            If you aren’t collecting it but are earning an above average wage why don’t you make voluntary tax payments to reduce your income to the average value, if that is your belief in how the world should work?

      • Nic the NZer 16.1.2

        Your correct that the Cullen fund is just to reduce liability on future governments for super payments. But the question is if all that happens, for a super payment to occur, is some account entry is transferred from the govt account to said pensioners account inside the reserve bank, then how can this obligation ever be a burden?

        • alwyn 16.1.2.1

          If it was really as simple as that we wouldn’t need any Cullen Fund at all, would we?
          We wouldn’t need any taxes either. Just transfer money without limit.
          That is roughly the way that Zimbabwe did it and look where they have ended up.

          • Nic the NZer 16.1.2.1.1

            Of course you need taxes. You just don’t need them in order for the govt to make payments. That is not the purpose of taxation.

            When you say roughly the way Zimbabwe did it you are leaving out the part where the farming base of the country was decimated. That has been a factor in every hyperinflation. But your welcome to your ignorance about how the economy works if it keeps you happy.

            New Zealand used to pay super before the Cullen fund of course.

            • alwyn 16.1.2.1.1.1

              “farming base of the country was decimated”.
              You clearly don’t know what the phrase means. The damage was much, much worse than that. Look it up.
              http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=decimate

              ” how the economy works “.
              Have you ever considered learning some economics? Something more than a Readers Digest condensed book or the material that the old Social Credit Party turned out.
              You might find it instructive and it would help you contribute something useful to a debate. Your normal attempts are quite risible.

  17. With suitable protections for vulnerable people, such as physical labourers, the age of eligibility for universal superannuation needs to rise.

    Yes. People like me do not need the country’s long-suffering taxpayers to fund us a lifestyle of leisure at 65. We’re usually capable of earning our own living at 65 and there’s no reason we shouldn’t.

    • Shona 17.1

      Like fuck the age for super needs to be raised!! ANY party proposing that is toast and rightly so. That shithead Muldoon canned Bill Sutch’s brilliant super scheme and this useless mongrel English has steadily strip mined the Cullen Fund. We can afford it! At gross 4.3%of GDP,the cost of New Zealand super is relatively low by international standards.This compares very well with an OECD average of around 7%. Because NZ Super is taxable, its cost net of tax is around 3.7% of GDP. Wanna guarantee Winston gets 15% of the vote just try taking it away. You whining miserable sods.There’s fuck all work for us oldies irrespective of our qualifications and experience. We are not wanted we cost too much! Most of us are debt free healthy and can afford some private health care . BUT a joint replacement costs in excess of $20,000 how many of these are we supposed to be able to pay for, for example as well as support ourselves at around $30,000(net) p.a. going into your late 60’s?????? ( I’ve already paid for two of these ops )Try working 40 hours a week at 65 years Anthony with osteoarthritis! Oh and then there’s reading glasses and driving glasses at $500 a pop every 3 years . The list goes on and on! Those of us who took years out of the workforce so our offspring would be functional contributors to society are penalised by dickhead Kiwi employers every step of the way. Regardless of qualifications. Work for yourself?? did that when I was young ain’t doing it now.
      We CAN AFFORD SUPER , stick your ageist propganda up your arse!

      • greg 17.1.1

        nationals after looting the country they have looting the future as well is make us pay they can go to hell
        Norman kirk
        Winston peters
        Michele Cullen
        all tried only to have national commit treason and fuck over any attempt at building a savings base. there latest fuck over is to allow http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/opinion-analysis/83228941/Rob-Stock-Law-to-let-banks-raid-debtors-KiwiSaver-accounts-planned
        they screwed over kiwi saver by constantly changing the rules totally stuffed the Cullen fund as well if national can do it for the baby boomer’s then national can do it for the rest of us as well.

      • Psycho Milt 17.1.2

        BUT a joint replacement costs in excess of $20,000 how many of these are we supposed to be able to pay for, for example as well as support ourselves at around $30,000(net) p.a. going into your late 60’s?

        So, your argument is that receiving national superannuation at 65 rather than 67 is essential because otherwise it would be impossible to pay for expensive operations. How does that work, exactly?

        • Shona 17.1.2.1

          Fuck off psycho! Disingenuous as ever! Not an argument an example of the realities of old age. Super takes the edge off living costs you moron! We have paid our effing taxes we have saved we continue to provide for ourselves etc etc. My argument is contained in the figures for the costs of Super so up yours you Tory fucker!

          • Psycho Milt 17.1.2.1.1

            Not an argument…

            Yes, I could see it wasn’t, that’s why I asked what your point was. You still don’t seem to have one, you’re just very angry that someone’s arguing the able-bodied should contribute some form of work to society (which, by the way, is a socialist argument, not a Tory one).

      • Carolyn_nth 17.1.3

        Hearing aids ain’t cheap either.

      • alwyn 17.1.4

        “Bill Sutch’s brilliant super scheme”
        Really? And there I was thinking it was Roger Douglas’s brainchild.
        What did Bill Sutch, who was long out of Government and was about to go on trial for espionage, have to do with it?

  18. saveNZ 18

    Your’re all looking at the wrong targets for tax avoidance… why we need a transaction tax!!!

    “THE AUSTRALIAN TAX OFFICE (ATO) released the ‘Corporate Tax Transparency Report’ last week.

    It shows that 38% of the 1539 public and private foreign companies with turnover greater than $100 million paid no income tax in the 2013-14 financial year.

    Recent amendments to the disclosure rules will see the ATO release similar tax details for Australian private companies with turnover greater than $200 million, possibly as early as January 2016.

    This first report specifically names the companies. It shows that 579 big businesses paid no income tax in 2013-14. Let that figure sink in as the government attacks those on welfare, the aged, low paid workers and others and plays around with increasing the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and extending its base to fresh food, health, education, sewage and water.

    Among those who paid no income tax were (and this is just a few of the As)

    Adani Abbott Point Terminal Holdings (despite having almost $270 m in gross revenue);
    Australian Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd (with over $3 billion in gross revenue)
    American Express (with sales of $943 million)
    Other non-taxables chosen more or less at random include David Jones with over $2 billion in sales revenue, Qantas, with gross revenue of more than $14 billion, its competitor Virgin, with more than $4 billion in sales, ExxonMobil with more than $9 billion in gross revenue and the University Cooperative Bookshop with sales of $115 million. None had any taxable income or paid any income tax.”

    https://independentaustralia.net/politics/politics-display/tax-big-business-avoidance-and-other-bruises,8509

    • Henry Filth 18.1

      Thats because they tax income less expenses.

      Tax income without deductions and avoidance becomes much harder. While enforcement becomes much easier.

      Its simple to have income with no profitt, less simple to have profit with no income.

      Keep it simple.

      Bring business taxation into line with personal taxation. End the feather-bedding.

  19. Nic the NZer 19

    Looks to me like Labour would like to double down on its foolish neoliberal super ambitions…and lose another election in the process. FFS, Labour needs to leave pushing ACT policy goals to the ACT party.

  20. Robertina 20

    As any child poverty campaigner will tell you, the universality of Super means deprivation among older people is much less than those aged 0-17.
    Its low admin costs from not having to put people through hoops to qualify as ”vulnerable” helps offset the cost of universality.
    Of course older people’s financial security is also underpinned by home ownership rates, and home ownership rates will be substantially less by the time any change in the eligibility age takes effect.

  21. Carolyn_nth 21

    On Morning Report, Little said, as PM, he would not raise the age for super:

    Labour Party leader Andrew Little says he wouldn’t raise the age for eligibility on Superannuation if he was in power.

    His comments come after new Prime Minister Bill English said yesterday he would not renew predecessor John Key’s pledge not to raise the retirement age.

    Speaking to Morning Report’s Susie Ferguson, Mr Little said some people struggled to continue working until they were 65 as it is.

    Watch the interview here:

    • Ross 21.1

      Little used an example in that interview of a linesman who was 64 years old. That’s a bad example as someone who was 64 wouldn’t be affected by a gradual increase to the age of eligiblity to 67.

      It’s worth noting that the Cullen fund won’t be used until about 2030 and when the fund is used, it will contribute only about 9% of the cost of super.

    • alwyn 21.2

      ABOUT TURN.
      Get into line you Little acolytes.
      The Great Leader has spoken and now everyone must get back in step.
      A change in eligibility age is NOT required.

      How can anyone possibly expect to get a lasting cross party accord on superannuation when the Labour Party flips its stance every year or two when they change their leader?

      Are there any Labour Party members here who have been saying that the age must increase who are willing to say that Little is wrong?
      The penalty is, of course, that you will get the Leggett treatment from the Great Leader. Abused, called a scab and booted out of the party.

  22. Baarn 22

    It may not be so easy to determine who qualifies as physical labourers eg some nurses often have ruined backs from the lifting they do every day (regardless of H & S nonsense about using hoists etc there’s never time for messing around like that.) While nurses in some areas will never have had to do any lifting at all.

  23. Zid 23

    And now Angry Andy has come out and said he wouldn’t raise the retirement age. What a fool, he is the gift that keeps on giving to National. He will pay for that statement

Recent Comments

Recent Posts

  • Clued Up: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.
    “But, that’s the thing, mate, isn’t it? We showed ourselves to be nothing more useful than a bunch of angry old men, shaking our fists at the sky. Were we really that angry at Labour and the Greens? Or was it just the inescapable fact of our own growing irrelevancy ...
    3 hours ago
  • JERRY COYNE: A powerful University dean in New Zealand touts merging higher education with indigeno...
    Jerry Coyne writes –  This article from New Zealand’s Newsroom site was written by Julie Rowland,  the deputy dean of the Faculty of Science at the University of Auckland as well as a geologist and the Director of the Ngā Ara Whetū | Centre for Climate, Biodiversity & Society. In other ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 hours ago
  • Ain't nobody gonna steal this heart away.
    Ain't nobody gonna steal this heart away.For the last couple of weeks its felt as though all the good things in our beautiful land are under attack.These isles in the southern Pacific. The home of the Māori people. A land of easy going friendliness, openness, and she’ll be right. A ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    11 hours ago
  • Speaking for the future
    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.MondayYou cannot be seriousOne might think, god, people who are seeing all this must be regretting their vote.But one might be mistaken.There are people whose chief priority is not wanting to be ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    12 hours ago
  • How Should We Organise a Modern Economy?
    Alan Bollard, formerly Treasury Secretary, Reserve Bank Governor and Chairman of APEC, has written an insightful book exploring command vs demand approaches to the economy. The Cold War included a conflict about ideas; many were economic. Alan Bollard’s latest book Economists in the Cold War focuses on the contribution of ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    1 day ago
  • Willis fails a taxing app-titude test but govt supporters will cheer moves on Te Pukenga and the Hum...
    Buzz from the Beehive The Minister of Defence has returned from Noumea to announce New Zealand will host next year’s South Pacific Defence Ministers’ Meeting and (wearing another ministerial hat) to condemn malicious cyber activity conducted by the Russian Government. A bigger cheer from people who voted for the Luxon ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 day ago
  • ELIZABETH RATA: In defence of the liberal university and against indigenisation
    The suppression of individual thought in our universities spills over into society, threatening free speech everywhere. Elizabeth Rata writes –  Indigenising New Zealand’s universities is well underway, presumably with the agreement of University Councils and despite the absence of public discussion. Indigenising, under the broader umbrella of decolonisation, ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • Gordon Campbell on the skewed media coverage of Gaza
    Now that he’s back as Foreign Minister, maybe Winston Peters should start reading the MFAT website. If he did, Peters would find MFAT celebrating the 25th anniversary of how New Zealand alerted the rest of the world to the genocide developing in Rwanda. Quote: New Zealand played an important role ...
    1 day ago
  • “Your Circus, Your Clowns.”
    It must have been a hard first couple of weeks for National voters, since the coalition was announced. Seeing their party make so many concessions to New Zealand First and ACT that there seems little remains of their own policies, other than the dwindling dream of tax cuts and the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago
  • Weekly Roundup 8-December-2023
    It’s Friday again and Christmas is fast approaching. Here’s some of the stories that caught our attention. This week in Greater Auckland On Tuesday Matt covered some of the recent talk around the costs, benefits and challenges with the City Rail Link. On Thursday Matt looked at how ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    1 day ago
  • End-of-week escapism
    Amsterdam to Hong Kong William McCartney16,000 kilometres41 days18 trains13 countries11 currencies6 long-distance taxis4 taxi apps4 buses3 sim cards2 ferries1 tram0 medical events (surprisingly)Episode 4Whether the Sofia-Istanbul Express really qualifies to be called an express is debatable, but it’s another one of those likeably old and slow trains tha… ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 day ago
  • The Hoon around the week to Dec 8
    Governor-General Dame Cindy Kiro arrives for the State Opening of Parliament (Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images)TL;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:New Finance Minister Nicola Willis set herself a ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • New Zealand’s Witchcraft Laws: 1840/1858-1961/1962
    Sometimes one gets morbidly curious about the oddities of one’s own legal system. Sometimes one writes entire essays on New Zealand’s experience with Blasphemous Libel: https://phuulishfellow.wordpress.com/2017/05/09/blasphemous-libel-new-zealand-politics/ And sometimes one follows up the exact historical status of witchcraft law in New Zealand. As one does, of course. ...
    2 days ago
  • No surprises
    Don’t expect any fiscal shocks or surprises when the books are opened on December 20 with the unveiling of the Half Yearly Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU). That was the message yesterday from Westpac in an economic commentary. But the bank’s analysis did not include any changes to capital ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #49 2023
    113 articles in 48 journals by 674 contributing authors Physical science of climate change, effects Diversity of Lagged Relationships in Global Means of Surface Temperatures and Radiative Budgets for CMIP6 piControl Simulations, Tsuchida et al., Journal of Climate 10.1175/jcli-d-23-0045.1 Do abrupt cryosphere events in High Mountain Asia indicate earlier tipping ...
    2 days ago
  • Phone calls at Kia Kaha primary
    It is quiet reading time in Room 13! It is so quiet you can hear the Tui outside. It is so quiet you can hear the Fulton Hogan crew.It is so quiet you can hear old Mr Grant and old Mr Bradbury standing by the roadworks and counting the conesand going on ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • A question of confidence is raised by the Minister of Police, but he had to be questioned by RNZ to ...
    It looks like the new ministerial press secretaries have quickly learned the art of camouflaging exactly what their ministers are saying – or, at least, of keeping the hard news  out of the headlines and/or the opening sentences of the statements they post on the home page of the governments ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    2 days ago
  • Xmas  good  cheer  for the dairy industry  as Fonterra lifts its forecast
    The big dairy co-op Fonterra  had  some Christmas  cheer to offer  its farmers this week, increasing its forecast farmgate milk price and earnings guidance for  the year after what it calls a strong start to the year. The forecast  midpoint for the 2023/24 season is up 25cs to $7.50 per ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago
  • MICHAEL BASSETT: Modern Maori myths
    Michael Bassett writes – Many of the comments about the Coalition’s determination to wind back the dramatic Maorification of New Zealand of the last three years would have you believe the new government is engaged in a full-scale attack on Maori. In reality, all that is happening ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    2 days ago
  • Dreams of eternal sunshine at a spotless COP28
    Mary Robinson asked Al Jaber a series of very simple, direct and highly pertinent questions and he responded with a high-octane public meltdown. Photos: Getty Images / montage: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR The hygiene effects of direct sunshine are making some inroads, perhaps for the very first time, on the normalised ‘deficit ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • LINDSAY MITCHELL: Oh, the irony
    Lindsay Mitchell writes – Appointed by new Labour PM Jacinda Ardern in 2018, Cindy Kiro headed the Welfare Expert Advisory Group (WEAG) tasked with reviewing and recommending reforms to the welfare system. Kiro had been Children’s Commissioner during Helen Clark’s Labour government but returned to academia subsequently. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago
  • Transport Agencies don’t want Harbour Tunnels
    It seems even our transport agencies don’t want Labour’s harbour crossing plans. In August the previous government and Waka Kotahi announced their absurd preferred option the new harbour crossing that at the time was estimated to cost $35-45 billion. It included both road tunnels and a wiggly light rail tunnel ...
    2 days ago
  • Webworm Presents: Jurassic Park on 35mm
    Hi,Paying Webworm members such as yourself keep this thing running, so as 2023 draws to close, I wanted to do two things to say a giant, loud “THANKS”. Firstly — I’m giving away 10 Mister Organ blu-rays in New Zealand, and another 10 in America. More details down below.Secondly — ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    3 days ago
  • The Prime Minister's Dream.
    Yesterday saw the State Opening of Parliament, the Speech from the Throne, and then Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s dream for Aotearoa in his first address. But first the pomp and ceremony, the arrival of the Governor General.Dame Cindy Kiro arrived on the forecourt outside of parliament to a Māori welcome. ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago
  • National’s new MP; the proud part-Maori boy raised in a state house
    Probably not since 1975 have we seen a government take office up against such a wall of protest and complaint. That was highlighted yesterday, the day that the new Parliament was sworn in, with news that King Tuheitia has called a national hui for late January to develop a ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    3 days ago
  • Climate Adam: Battlefield Earth – How War Fuels Climate Catastrophe
    This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). War, conflict and climate change are tearing apart lives across the world. But these aren't separate harms - they're intricately connected. ...
    3 days ago
  • They do not speak for us, and they do not speak for the future
    These dire woeful and intolerant people have been so determinedly going about their small and petulant business, it’s hard to keep up. At the end of the new government’s first woeful week, Audrey Young took the time to count off its various acts of denigration of Te Ao Māori:Review the ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Another attack on te reo
    The new white supremacist government made attacking te reo a key part of its platform, promising to rename government agencies and force them to "communicate primarily in English" (which they already do). But today they've gone further, by trying to cut the pay of public servants who speak te reo: ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago
  • For the record, the Beehive buzz can now be regarded as “official”
    Buzz from the Beehive The biggest buzz we bring you from the Beehive today is that the government’s official website is up and going after being out of action for more than a week. The latest press statement came  from  Education Minister  Eric Stanford, who seized on the 2022 PISA ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • Climate Change: Failed again
    There was another ETS auction this morning. and like all the other ones this year, it failed to clear - meaning that 23 million tons of carbon (15 million ordinary units plus 8 million in the cost containment reserve) went up in smoke. Or rather, they didn't. Being unsold at ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell On The Government’s Assault On Maori
    This isn’t news, but the National-led coalition is mounting a sustained assault on Treaty rights and obligations. Even so, Christopher Luxon has described yesterday’s nationwide protests by Maori as “pretty unfair.” Poor thing. In the NZ Herald, Audrey Young has compiled a useful list of the many, many ways that ...
    3 days ago
  • Rising costs hit farmers hard, but  there’s more  positive news  for  them this  week 
    New Zealand’s dairy industry, the mainstay of the country’s export trade, has  been under  pressure  from rising  costs. Down on the  farm, this  has  been  hitting  hard. But there  was more positive news this week,  first   from the latest Fonterra GDT auction where  prices  rose,  and  then from  a  report ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    3 days ago
  • ROB MacCULLOCH:  Newshub and NZ Herald report misleading garbage about ACT’s van Veldon not follo...
    Rob MacCulloch writes –  In their rush to discredit the new government (which our MainStream Media regard as illegitimate and having no right to enact the democratic will of voters) the NZ Herald and Newshub are arguing ACT’s Deputy Leader Brooke van Veldon is not following Treasury advice ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Top 10 for Wednesday, December 6
    Even many young people who smoke support smokefree policies, fitting in with previous research showing the large majority of people who smoke regret starting and most want to quit. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s my pick of the top 10 news and analysis links elsewhere on the morning of Wednesday, December ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • Eleven years of work.
    Well it didn’t take six months, but the leaks have begun. Yes the good ship Coalition has inadvertently released a confidential cabinet paper into the public domain, discussing their axing of Fair Pay Agreements (FPAs).Oops.Just when you were admiring how smoothly things were going for the new government, they’ve had ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago
  • Why we're missing out on sharply lower inflation
    A wave of new and higher fees, rates and charges will ripple out over the economy in the next 18 months as mayors, councillors, heads of department and price-setters for utilities such as gas, electricity, water and parking ramp up charges. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Just when most ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • How Did We Get Here?
    Hi,Kiwis — keep the evening of December 22nd free. I have a meetup planned, and will send out an invite over the next day or so. This sounds sort of crazy to write, but today will be Tony Stamp’s final Totally Normal column of 2023. Somehow we’ve made it to ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    4 days ago
  • At a glance – Has the greenhouse effect been falsified?
    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 ...
    4 days ago
  • New Zealaders  have  high expectations of  new  government:  now let’s see if it can deliver?
    The electorate has high expectations of the  new  government.  The question is: can  it  deliver?    Some  might  say  the  signs are not  promising. Protestors   are  already marching in the streets. The  new  Prime Minister has had  little experience of managing  very diverse politicians  in coalition. The economy he  ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    4 days ago
  • You won't believe some of the numbers you have to pull when you're a Finance Minister
    Nicola of Marsden:Yo, normies! We will fix your cost of living worries by giving you a tax cut of 150 dollars. 150! Cash money! Vote National.Various people who can read and count:Actually that's 150 over a fortnight. Not a week, which is how you usually express these things.And actually, it looks ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago
  • Pushback
    When this government came to power, it did so on an explicitly white supremacist platform. Undermining the Waitangi Tribunal, removing Māori representation in local government, over-riding the courts which had tried to make their foreshore and seabed legislation work, eradicating te reo from public life, and ultimately trying to repudiate ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Defence ministerial meeting meant Collins missed the Maori Party’s mischief-making capers in Parli...
    Buzz from the Beehive Maybe this is not the best time for our Minister of Defence to have gone overseas. Not when the Maori Party is inviting (or should that be inciting?) its followers to join a revolution in a post which promoted its protest plans with a picture of ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • Threats of war have been followed by an invitation to join the revolution – now let’s see how th...
     A Maori Party post on Instagram invited party followers to ….  Tangata Whenua, Tangata Tiriti, Join the REVOLUTION! & make a stand!  Nationwide Action Day, All details in tiles swipe to see locations.  • This is our 1st hit out and tomorrow Tuesday the 5th is the opening ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Top 10 for Tuesday, December 4
    The RBNZ governor is citing high net migration and profit-led inflation as factors in the bank’s hawkish stance. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s my pick of the top 10 news and analysis links elsewhere on the morning of Tuesday, December 5, including:Reserve Bank Governor Adrian Orr says high net migration and ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Nicola Willis' 'show me the money' moment
    Willis has accused labour of “economic vandalism’, while Robertson described her comments as a “desperate diversion from somebody who can't make their tax package add up”. There will now be an intense focus on December 20 to see whether her hyperbole is backed up by true surprises. Photo montage: Lynn ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • CRL costs money but also provides huge benefits
    The City Rail Link has been in the headlines a bit recently so I thought I’d look at some of them. First up, yesterday the NZ Herald ran this piece about the ongoing costs of the CRL. Auckland ratepayers will be saddled with an estimated bill of $220 million each ...
    4 days ago
  • And I don't want the world to see us.
    Is this the most shambolic government in the history of New Zealand? Given that parliament hasn’t even opened they’ve managed quite a list of achievements to date.The Smokefree debacle trading lives for tax cuts, the Trumpian claims of bribery in the Media, an International award for indifference, and today the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Cooking the books
    Finance Minister Nicola Willis late yesterday stopped only slightly short of accusing her predecessor Grant Robertson of cooking the books. She complained that the Half Yearly Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU), due to be made public on December 20, would show “fiscal cliffs” that would amount to “billions of ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • Most people don’t realize how much progress we’ve made on climate change
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections The year was 2015. ‘Uptown Funk’ with Bruno Mars was at the top of the music charts. Jurassic World was the most popular new movie in theaters. And decades of futility in international climate negotiations was about to come to an end in ...
    5 days ago
  • Of Parliamentary Oaths and Clive Boonham
    As a heads-up, I am not one of those people who stay awake at night thinking about weird Culture War nonsense. At least so far as the current Maori/Constitutional arrangements go. In fact, I actually consider it the least important issue facing the day to day lives of New ...
    5 days ago
  • Bearing True Allegiance?
    Strong Words: “We do not consent, we do not surrender, we do not cede, we do not submit; we, the indigenous, are rising. We do not buy into the colonial fictions this House is built upon. Te Pāti Māori pledges allegiance to our mokopuna, our whenua, and Te Tiriti o ...
    5 days ago
  • You cannot be serious
    Some days it feels like the only thing to say is: Seriously? No, really. Seriously?OneSomeone has used their health department access to share data about vaccinations and patients, and inform the world that New Zealanders have been dying in their hundreds of thousands from the evil vaccine. This of course is pure ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago
  • A promise kept: govt pulls the plug on Lake Onslow scheme – but this saving of $16bn is denounced...
    Buzz from the Beehive After $21.8 million was spent on investigations, the plug has been pulled on the Lake Onslow pumped-hydro electricity scheme, The scheme –  that technically could have solved New Zealand’s looming energy shortage, according to its champions – was a key part of the defeated Labour government’s ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • CHRIS TROTTER: The Maori Party and Oath of Allegiance
    If those elected to the Māori Seats refuse to take them, then what possible reason could the country have for retaining them?   Chris Trotter writes – Christmas is fast approaching, which, as it does every year, means gearing up for an abstruse general knowledge question. “Who was ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • BRIAN EASTON:  Forward to 2017
    The coalition party agreements are mainly about returning to 2017 when National lost power. They show commonalities but also some serious divergencies. Brian Easton writes The two coalition agreements – one National and ACT, the other National and New Zealand First – are more than policy documents. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Climate Change: Fossils
    When the new government promised to allow new offshore oil and gas exploration, they were warned that there would be international criticism and reputational damage. Naturally, they arrogantly denied any possibility that that would happen. And then they finally turned up at COP, to criticism from Palau, and a "fossil ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • GEOFFREY MILLER:  NZ’s foreign policy resets on AUKUS, Gaza and Ukraine
    Geoffrey Miller writes – New Zealand’s international relations are under new management. And Winston Peters, the new foreign minister, is already setting a change agenda. As expected, this includes a more pro-US positioning when it comes to the Pacific – where Peters will be picking up where he ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on the government’s smokefree laws debacle
    The most charitable explanation for National’s behaviour over the smokefree legislation is that they have dutifully fulfilled the wishes of the Big Tobacco lobby and then cast around – incompetently, as it turns out – for excuses that might sell this health policy U-turn to the public. The less charitable ...
    5 days ago
  • Top 10 links at 10 am for Monday, December 4
    As Deb Te Kawa writes in an op-ed, the new Government seems to have immediately bought itself fights with just about everyone. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Here’s my pick of the top 10 news and analysis links elsewhere as of 10 am on Monday December 4, including:Palau’s President ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Be Honest.
    Let’s begin today by thinking about job interviews.During my career in Software Development I must have interviewed hundreds of people, hired at least a hundred, but few stick in the memory.I remember one guy who was so laid back he was practically horizontal, leaning back in his chair until his ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: New Zealand’s foreign policy resets on AUKUS, Gaza and Ukraine
    New Zealand’s international relations are under new management. And Winston Peters, the new foreign minister, is already setting a change agenda. As expected, this includes a more pro-US positioning when it comes to the Pacific – where Peters will be picking up where he left off. Peters sought to align ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    6 days ago
  • Auckland rail tunnel the world’s most expensive
    Auckland’s city rail link is the most expensive rail project in the world per km, and the CRL boss has described the cost of infrastructure construction in Aotearoa as a crisis. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The 3.5 km City Rail Link (CRL) tunnel under Auckland’s CBD has cost ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • First big test coming
    The first big test of the new Government’s approach to Treaty matters is likely to be seen in the return of the Resource Management Act. RMA Minister Chris Bishop has confirmed that he intends to introduce legislation to repeal Labour’s recently passed Natural and Built Environments Act and its ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    6 days ago
  • The Song of Saqua: Volume III
    Time to revisit something I haven’t covered in a while: the D&D campaign, with Saqua the aquatic half-vampire. Last seen in July: https://phuulishfellow.wordpress.com/2023/07/27/the-song-of-saqua-volume-ii/ The delay is understandable, once one realises that the interim saw our DM come down with a life-threatening medical situation. They have since survived to make ...
    6 days ago
  • Chris Bishop: Smokin’
    Yes. Correct. It was an election result. And now we are the elected government. ...
    My ThinksBy boonman
    6 days ago
  • 2023 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #48
    A chronological listing of news and opinion articles posted on the Skeptical Science  Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Nov 26, 2023 thru Dec 2, 2023. Story of the Week CO2 readings from Mauna Loa show failure to combat climate change Daily atmospheric carbon dioxide data from Hawaiian volcano more ...
    6 days ago
  • Affirmative Action.
    Affirmative Action was a key theme at this election, although I don’t recall anyone using those particular words during the campaign.They’re positive words, and the way the topic was talked about was anything but. It certainly wasn’t a campaign of saying that Affirmative Action was a good thing, but that, ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago
  • 100 days of something
    It was at the end of the Foxton straights, at the end of 1978, at 100km/h, that someone tried to grab me from behind on my Yamaha.They seemed to be yanking my backpack. My first thought was outrage. My second was: but how? Where have they come from? And my ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    7 days ago
  • Look who’s stepped up to champion Winston
    There’s no news to be gleaned from the government’s official website today  – it contains nothing more than the message about the site being under maintenance. The time this maintenance job is taking and the costs being incurred have us musing on the government’s commitment to an assault on inflation. ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 week ago
  • What's The Story?
    Don’t you sometimes wish they’d just tell the truth? No matter how abhorrent or ugly, just straight up tell us the truth?C’mon guys, what you’re doing is bad enough anyway, pretending you’re not is only adding insult to injury.Instead of all this bollocks about the Smokefree changes being to do ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • The longest of weeks
    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.Friday Under New Management Week in review, quiz style1. Which of these best describes Aotearoa?a. Progressive nation, proud of its egalitarian spirit and belief in a fair go b. Best little country on the planet c. ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago
  • Suggested sessions of EGU24 to submit abstracts to
    Like earlier this year, members from our team will be involved with next year's General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union (EGU). The conference will take place on premise in Vienna as well as online from April 14 to 19, 2024. The session catalog has been available since November 1 ...
    1 week ago
  • Under New Management
    1. Which of these best describes Aotearoa?a. Progressive nation, proud of its egalitarian spirit and belief in a fair go b. Best little country on the planet c. Under New Management 2. Which of these best describes the 100 days of action announced this week by the new government?a. Petulantb. Simplistic and wrongheaded c. ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago
  • While we wait patiently, our new Minister of Education is up and going with a 100-day action plan
    Sorry to say, the government’s official website is still out of action. When Point of Order paid its daily visit, the message was the same as it has been for the past week: Site under maintenance Beehive.govt.nz is currently under maintenance. We will be back shortly. Thank you for your ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 week ago
  • DAVID FARRAR: Hysterical bullshit
    Radio NZ reports: Te Pāti Māori’s co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer has accused the new government of “deliberate .. systemic genocide” over its policies to roll back the smokefree policy and the Māori Health Authority. The left love hysterical language. If you oppose racial quotas in laws, you are a racist. And now if you sack ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 week ago

  • Ministers visit Hawke’s Bay to grasp recovery needs
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon joined Cyclone Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell and Transport and Local Government Minister Simeon Brown, to meet leaders of cyclone and flood-affected regions in the Hawke’s Bay. The visit reinforced the coalition Government’s commitment to support the region and better understand its ongoing requirements, Mr Mitchell says.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • New Zealand condemns malicious cyber activity
    New Zealand has joined the UK and other partners in condemning malicious cyber activity conducted by the Russian Government, Minister Responsible for the Government Communications Security Bureau Judith Collins says. The statement follows the UK’s attribution today of malicious cyber activity impacting its domestic democratic institutions and processes, as well ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Disestablishment of Te Pūkenga begins
    The Government has begun the process of disestablishing Te Pūkenga as part of its 100-day plan, Minister for Tertiary Education and Skills Penny Simmonds says.  “I have started putting that plan into action and have met with the chair and chief Executive of Te Pūkenga to advise them of my ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Climate Change Minister to attend COP28 in Dubai
    Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will be leaving for Dubai today to attend COP28, the 28th annual UN climate summit, this week. Simon Watts says he will push for accelerated action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement, deliver New Zealand’s national statement and connect with partner countries, private sector leaders ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • New Zealand to host 2024 Pacific defence meeting
    Defence Minister Judith Collins yesterday announced New Zealand will host next year’s South Pacific Defence Ministers’ Meeting (SPDMM). “Having just returned from this year’s meeting in Nouméa, I witnessed first-hand the value of meeting with my Pacific counterparts to discuss regional security and defence matters. I welcome the opportunity to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Study shows need to remove distractions in class
    The Government is committed to lifting school achievement in the basics and that starts with removing distractions so young people can focus on their learning, Education Minister Erica Stanford says.   The 2022 PISA results released this week found that Kiwi kids ranked 5th in the world for being distracted ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Minister sets expectations of Commissioner
    Today I met with Police Commissioner Andrew Coster to set out my expectations, which he has agreed to, says Police Minister Mark Mitchell. Under section 16(1) of the Policing Act 2008, the Minister can expect the Police Commissioner to deliver on the Government’s direction and priorities, as now outlined in ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • New Zealand needs a strong and stable ETS
    New Zealand needs a strong and stable Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) that is well placed for the future, after emission units failed to sell for the fourth and final auction of the year, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says.  At today’s auction, 15 million New Zealand units (NZUs) – each ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • PISA results show urgent need to teach the basics
    With 2022 PISA results showing a decline in achievement, Education Minister Erica Stanford is confident that the Coalition Government’s 100-day plan for education will improve outcomes for Kiwi kids.  The 2022 PISA results show a significant decline in the performance of 15-year-old students in maths compared to 2018 and confirms ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Collins leaves for Pacific defence meeting
    Defence Minister Judith Collins today departed for New Caledonia to attend the 8th annual South Pacific Defence Ministers’ meeting (SPDMM). “This meeting is an excellent opportunity to meet face-to-face with my Pacific counterparts to discuss regional security matters and to demonstrate our ongoing commitment to the Pacific,” Judith Collins says. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Working for Families gets cost of living boost
    Putting more money in the pockets of hard-working families is a priority of this Coalition Government, starting with an increase to Working for Families, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says. “We are starting our 100-day plan with a laser focus on bringing down the cost of living, because that is what ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Post-Cabinet press conference
    Most weeks, following Cabinet, the Prime Minister holds a press conference for members of the Parliamentary Press Gallery. This page contains the transcripts from those press conferences, which are supplied by Hansard to the Office of the Prime Minister. It is important to note that the transcripts have not been edited ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Lake Onslow pumped hydro scheme scrapped
    The Government has axed the $16 billion Lake Onslow pumped hydro scheme championed by the previous government, Energy Minister Simeon Brown says. “This hugely wasteful project was pouring money down the drain at a time when we need to be reining in spending and focussing on rebuilding the economy and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • NZ welcomes further pause in fighting in Gaza
    New Zealand welcomes the further one-day extension of the pause in fighting, which will allow the delivery of more urgently-needed humanitarian aid into Gaza and the release of more hostages, Foreign Minister Winston Peters said. “The human cost of the conflict is horrific, and New Zealand wants to see the violence ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Condolences on passing of Henry Kissinger
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters today expressed on behalf of the New Zealand Government his condolences to the family of former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who has passed away at the age of 100 at his home in Connecticut. “While opinions on his legacy are varied, Secretary Kissinger was ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Backing our kids to learn the basics
    Every child deserves a world-leading education, and the Coalition Government is making that a priority as part of its 100-day plan. Education Minister Erica Stanford says that will start with banning cellphone use at school and ensuring all primary students spend one hour on reading, writing, and maths each day. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • US Business Summit Speech – Regional stability through trade
    I would like to begin by echoing the Prime Minister’s thanks to the organisers of this Summit, Fran O’Sullivan and the Auckland Business Chamber.  I want to also acknowledge the many leading exporters, sector representatives, diplomats, and other leaders we have joining us in the room. In particular, I would like ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Keynote Address to the United States Business Summit, Auckland
    Good morning. Thank you, Rosemary, for your warm introduction, and to Fran and Simon for this opportunity to make some brief comments about New Zealand’s relationship with the United States.  This is also a chance to acknowledge my colleague, Minister for Trade Todd McClay, Ambassador Tom Udall, Secretary of Foreign ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • India New Zealand Business Council Speech, India as a Strategic Priority
    Good morning, tēnā koutou and namaskar. Many thanks, Michael, for your warm welcome. I would like to acknowledge the work of the India New Zealand Business Council in facilitating today’s event and for the Council’s broader work in supporting a coordinated approach for lifting New Zealand-India relations. I want to also ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Coalition Government unveils 100-day plan
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has laid out the Coalition Government’s plan for its first 100 days from today. “The last few years have been incredibly tough for so many New Zealanders. People have put their trust in National, ACT and NZ First to steer them towards a better, more prosperous ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • New Zealand welcomes European Parliament vote on the NZ-EU Free Trade Agreement
    A significant milestone in ratifying the NZ-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was reached last night, with 524 of the 705 member European Parliament voting in favour to approve the agreement. “I’m delighted to hear of the successful vote to approve the NZ-EU FTA in the European Parliament overnight. This is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

Page generated in The Standard by Wordpress at 2023-12-09T05:39:10+00:00