Totally shit farming

Written By: - Date published: 7:10 am, August 12th, 2019 - 47 comments
Categories: Environment, farming, sustainability - Tags: , , , ,

I grew up in a town, but one side of my family are farmers and I’ve lived in and around rural areas much of my adult life. I’ve seen the changes and like many been appalled at what has happened to so many lowland waterways and landscapes that I know and love. I believe strongly that farming is core to New Zealand: culturally, spiritually and in terms of our ability to survive in a climate change future that is already threatening food supplies.

Photo via RadioNZ

Because of that I’m more supportive of farmers than some, and see encouragement of the ones wanting to do the right things as part of my politics. New Zealand has good, long term examples of farming with nature in mind, and many more farmers would be doing better land management with a change in support around finance and advice.

I also believe there are farmers who are dangerous and will need to be stopped because there is no telling them. To my mind this isn’t farming, it’s strip mining nature for short term profit. It destroys the land, the soil, fertility and waterways. It’s industrial, for-maximum-profit, export-driven farming that trashes the very environment upon which it, and all of us, depend. In a climate crisis world, this is not about growing food, and this hubris will kill us. It beggars belief that industrial farmers are being allowed to do this. Looking at you regional councils.


 
So I’m pleased to see that a few weeks ago environmentalist Angus Robson launched a campaign against winter cropping (a practice of letting stock strip graze a winter crop like swedes). This video footage shows why, watch all 3 minutes to see the scope of what is going on,

While I have some degree of acceptance of farmers needing time to change practice, what I see in the video is wilful ignorance and it sets my sustainability heart and brain on fire. Industrial dairying is not necessary, it’s been going on far too long, and it’s the epitome of greed farming. I don’t know who farms the land in the video, and I’m glad I don’t because it allows me to say some sharp-tongued things.

I saw the footage when RNZ first put it up and had such a visceral reaction of shock I couldn’t read the story. Around the same time, farmers I follow on twitter were talking reasonably about the need to transition off winter cropping where it was causing problems, because common sense. Meanwhile, Federated Farmers have been going blah, blah, blah, the usual bullshit about them being the real victims here, with the blatant subtexts of: we will do what we want, and, we will change as slowly as we need to in order to keep making money from the industry because that is what is important.

Yesterday The Southland Times online reported that some farmers near Mossburn had objected to the conditions on their farms and stock being photographed, and seemed to think they could stop that,

Two environmentalists spent their Sunday holed up in a house in Northern Southland, while farmers held a barbecue at the end of their driveway, as a stoush over winter grazing in Southland escalated at the weekend.

One farmer told Stuff they set out to stop more photographs of stock being taken and the environmentalists were welcome to come out and talk them.

Police were at the Mossburn property on Sunday morning amid allegations of vehicles being rammed, intimidation and trespassing, but no charges have been laid.

It’s unclear if the farmers were blocking the drive or not, and police appear to not be doing their job properly. Former Southland Federated Farmers president Allan Baird was there going blah, blah, blah, we’re the real victims here, and you’re destroying our livelihood and the local economy. Allan Baird appears to think it’s ok to pour cow shit into rivers and has been convicted and fined for it.

I’ll hazard a guess that some of the Mossburn farmers would be doing the right thing if they weren’t being so badly served by their industry reps. Southland didn’t used to be full of industrial dairying, someone taught the farmers how to do that. Imagine how things would change if Fed Farmers went ecological.

It’s not like any of this is new. Problems with industrial dairying have been obvious in Southland for decades. I think time is up.

Here’s what we could be doing instead. This seven minute video showcases a Hawke’s Bay sheep and cattle farm that is using regenerative agriculture to produce food, restore the land, protect biodiversity and sequester carbon. If we want to talk about how to grow food, this is one way to do it that doesn’t fuck the planet.

It’s not perfect, and farmers intent on high stocking rates and maximum profit won’t be able to do this, but the benefits inherent in regenag are  broader, more stable and more resilient than much of what we see in Southland currently. The choices are there.

Want a Southland example? Mangapiri Downs in Western Southland has been an organic stud sheep, cattle and forestry farm for thirty years. This is what our landscapes could be like,

Post updated 10am.

47 comments on “Totally shit farming ”

  1. Robert Guyton 1

    Good morning weka. I'm asking questions of my council now, including requesting that this video be shown at Wednesday's meeting of council and commented upon by councillors, all of whom are aware or the increased focus on wintering practices this year and several of whom are in fact winter-feeding their own stock right now. I believe there may be protest action of some sort planned to involve the council more intimately with the issue, but it's early yet and we'll wait and see what transpires. That video footage is hugely concerning, particularly given the proximity of the churned mud and muddy surface water to streams, at least from what I can see there.

    • gsays 1.1

      Morena Robert, would you care to speculate how many of your fellow councillors would identify as sheep/beef farmers?

      I seem to recall Millan Ruka (Northland waterways advocate) expressing frustration at presenting damming video evidence to the council only for nothing to happen.

      Perhaps the regional councils are not the authority to get traction on this issue.

      S.P.C.A. or one of the ministries may be a better bet: MBIE or Agriculture.

      Once we get this sorted perhaps we can move to tree shelter belts next, in conjunction with our 1 billion trees aspiration.

      • weka 1.1.1

        Probably needs a large number of people in the room with placards and the media. On the steps outside too.

        The government has had the kind of response one would expect (set up a group to talk about it). Again, large numbers of people doing direct actions will make them take more notice. The ball is in the public's court.

    • Rosemary McDonald 1.2

      More power to your elbow there Mr. Guyton, but I fear you will be pushing shit up the proverbial with your fellow councilors.

      https://www.es.govt.nz/council/councillors/Pages/Meet-your-councillors.aspx

      In fact, I'd be asking around to see if any of them were seen beetling around the rohe with the barbie on the back of the ute.

      (I have donned gumboots and trespassed over the fence to haul the odd newborn calf from out the mud. I've come to the conclusion that most farmers and not overburdened with brains, and as a consequence tend to hire workers with even less cognitive ability. Why on earth would you organise your grazing rotation so the cows end up in the lowest lying land at calving time, which is timed for the wettest part of the year..'.Backbone of the country' ? Goddess help us all.)

      • Marcia 1.2.1

        O M G the height of cruelity . would they expect their Mrs to have their baby in the mud . Really what is this country coming to . Rosemary McDonald you are a gem . Telling farmers where they are going wrong will cause a bit of flack i am sure but if even half a dozen of them changed their practices it would be worth it . Halve the cow numbers and plant hemp to help the land repair it's self . So agree , Goddess help us ALL please .

    • weka 1.3

      All power to you for Wednesday Robert.

    • Thanks for paying attention, Weka and Robert. A better, sustainable agriculture model for growers is top priority to improve water quality.

  2. greywarshark 2

    Good of you to cover this. We need to separate out support for the farmers doing the right thing, and properly police those who are not meeting the reasonable standards we must have already. Action now, we have been talking about it and been fobbed off by Federated Farmers and the farmers who have no standards apart from profit and land-hunger.

  3. Robert Guyton 3

    Hi gsays

    7 of 12 councillors at Environment Southland farm livestock; some have have several farms. The Chairman is a sheep farmer; useful for mustering his flock at voting time smiley

  4. weka 4

    Fonterra says it is set to lose between $590 mln and $675 mln in the just-completed financial year after writing down the value of more of its assets

    The ailing giant dairy co-operative Fonterra is set to rack up a massive loss for the financial year just completed (end of July) and says it won't be paying a dividend.

    https://www.interest.co.nz/rural-news/101155/fonterra-says-it-set-lose-between-590-mln-and-675-mln-just-completed-financial

    • My last attempt at a contribution to this discussion somehow disappeared up its own cowpat so here we go again.

      I'm finding it increasingly harder to feel any sympathy for what you describe as the 'strip mining' farmer, and we should probably just let them go under if and when it all turns to shite – but not before ensuring that when the banks call in the loans and mortgagee sales start, the banks, big corporations and the multi-nationals are not the beneficiaries.

      Hopefully the government is considering the 'what ifs' and finding ways to protect those committed to the sustainable and who're able to show they've being trying to do the right thing. I'd suggest a starting point might be they'd be the ones that were opposed to the demutualisation of the co-op and who held concerns about handing over the control of their best interests to a few Masters of the Universe – many of whom never really ever had that spectacular a record (CEO's on $8m pa for example).

      When the rest of us are left with unswimable (and worse) rivers and who'll likely have to pick up many of the costs of cleanups whilst being expected to pay 'international prices' when times are good, but still don't notice much of a reduction when international prices go down – it looks a lot like a subsidy for shit thinking and the pursuit of greed over the needs of Mother Nature.

      I just heard some bloke farmer on the bizzznissss news bleating about having to worry about compliance costs (all those things like having to now pay the principle on loans; having to stop the arse end of a cow leaking into streams and rivers, and so on) – which given the ideology of the management he'd signed up to being a part of, really made my heart bleed (NOT). Jesus!, I've seen places in the 3rd World where there's been better long term thinking with consideration for the environment in which farming operates DESPITE a few Masters of the Universe trying on a big con or two.

      It might be that the only way there'll be a change in thinking is when a few of those 'strip miners' go belly up BUT, as I say – just as long as it doesn't benefit those who've been part of the big con.

  5. Muttonbird 5

    Hi Robert.

    Here's a link to the chief executive's statement on the matter of run-off through the Longbush Rural Kindergarten recently.

    He claims the farm has been issued with an abatement notice but what fine structure is in place at Environment Southland? I would have a $100K fine for this incident would stop the practice pretty quickly…

  6. marty mars 6

    Farming imo as it mostly is, is not sustainable and is a direct cause of misery whether that be pollution, cruelty or whatever. Farmers know this i think and the financial pressure along with the intolerance of communities to outdated practices and selfish behaviour contribute to mental health issues for this sector – if we add in the silencing and deliberate discouragement to seek help, we get real tragedy. We will need new people who actually are not profit driven to change things. The exploitative way is wrong.

    • marty mars 6.1

      I'll just add that I don't attribute 100% blame to actual farmers for this – they have been put in this position by our society and its values – the sad truth is that for every dirty farmer there are 10 dirty non farmers, for every cruel farmer there are 10 cruel non farmers . For my sins I have actually worked on farms, albeit dairy, within the last 10 years and when I did it it was a good reality check for my sentimental attitudes. As one of my bosses said when I started to become down about it, "mate, it's a factory, just outdoors". There is individual responsibility for sure and collectively we can all take some responsibility for the shit we are in. I think it can change and that will need new people – be good to create succession planning with city folk and get them out into the actual shit – maybe they could job swap with farmers lol

  7. cleangreen 7

    Yes Weka,

    I was 'town raised' and have now 13 years ago moved to the country to farm on a small block of 10Ha..

    It is a good life if you suppliment the feed but those pictures show some do not use supplimental feedout as we have always done.

    The picture you show are of what we call as simply 'dirty farming'.

    I would say because; it,shows where the ground is barren with no reserve land to graze on.

    It is so sad to see that some have been reduced to this.

    It is probably because of over-extended capital investments in the past.

    My car trailer is sitting in my house paddock with a stray Weka picking at some 'reject' citrus fruit I bought up from my last trip to Gisborne last week for 'provisions' so we live on a budget of cheap supplimental feedout with only buying maize and mineral blocks, and get trailers of reject vegettables and citrus.

    Farming should be a life of caring of animals first, – and an enjoyment of the life secondly.

    Anyway that's the way I see it.

    My Grandfather and his brother came to Wairoa in 2019 after one of them was severely wounded on 'flanders fields' in France during the first world war.

    Our Family had come from the 'West country' in England in 1842.

    Then left for NZ south Island gold fields of Clutha after being in the SA Adelaide after the gold boom days and settled in Canvastown (near Havelock) in the Peolorus Sounds and began fhe first dairy farming on the Clyde bank area lastly in Wairoa..

    Now our small hill farm is just over the Gisborne boundry from their 'Clyde Bank' farm in the Wairoa District, so I need to visit that farm some time.

    • cleangreen 7.1

      Sorry Grandad!!!

      I made a mistake above; – as I should have said; – ‘My Grandfather and his brother came to Wairoa in 1919 not 2019 I made a silly mistake there.

  8. Stuart Munro. 8

    There are some bad instances here, but I've spent a bit of time on farms and understand the point of some forms of winter grazing that don't make particularly pretty pictures. The swede is a pretty good fodder crop, it withstands cold weather (in fact it's improved by it), and once the tops are off them the field will turn to mud even without much in the way of rain. Being a root crop there is still a lot of feed in the field, and farmers like to get the most out of it in the same way they leave stock on land inclined to gorse or broom a bit longer, so that those less palatable plants get nibbled right down.

    I'm curious as to what is expected, for all that current practice seems pretty mean to the stock. Are root crops to be lifted for feeding? I expect many farmers don't have gear or a system for that. Or is it a shelter issue, NZ being unusual in how little shelter we provide for stock? I'll be interested to see what people come up with in the way of a solution.

    • Pat 8.1

      Curiously one of the current solutions is winter barns….often derided as 'industrial'…I fear that in the current climate (no pun intended) the ag sector is on a hiding to nothing…as would be any sector under such a microscope and with emotions running high.

      • Stuart Munro. 8.1.1

        I read something to the effect that shelter does great things for feed efficiency, which I guess means it would also reduce net methane emissions. A mobile shelter might be an option for low-lying farms – no harder to move than the irrigators that get lugged about.

        • Pat 8.1.1.1

          My observation is that winter feed lots are usually run pretty responsibly and the shelter issue is not confined to that practice….but as said no industry would look flash if it were examined closely.

          And then theres competing interests especially the price of product.

        • bwaghorn 8.1.1.2

          Any cow shelter would need a floor and full effluent disposal systems . Big cows shit alot.

          Cow barns would be the only way on soft wet soil types to stop major pugging . And yip they'll eat less and hold condition better out of the elements.

          On former ground giving them an extra feed when the weather roughs up can help. But I imagine Southland weather roughs up for days on end.

          • cleangreen 8.1.1.2.1

            BWaghorn,

            Yes we have put roofs over the sheep stockpens.

            We now have also built ‘carport roofs’ over other buildings.

            Now the sheep and their lambs shelter under when storms come calling, like last night as that storm was horeddus weather here.

            But we didn’t loose any roofing gladly.

      • weka 8.1.2

        Winter barns are a work around for industrial farming. The farms themselves are still a problem, they just mitigate that problem somewhat. As B points out, the shit still has to go somewhere.

        If the land cannot be managed sustainably with that many cows on it, then don't so that kind of farming. This is a no brainer unless one believes its valid to wreck the land for profit. There is no good reason to have industrial dairying in Southland except to make some people rich.

    • lprent 8.2

      I’ve worked on a farm that used swedes as art of the winter feed for sheep. That was nearly 40 years ago. Ash soil and lighter animals meant that it wasn’t a problem. We turned the field before letting stock on it for the shortish root feeds

      But it would be pretty obvious that farming practices are based on local conditions. This just reads like someone has been reading it out of a textbook without looking at local conditions.

      The problem here to me is that hard winter grazing of heavy animals in the wettest part of winter on boggy soil is a recipe for mud. With mud, you can’t turn the field and the cows will have a problem accessing the roots.

      The mud will increase silt runoff, destroy upper soil structure and make the replanting later and harder than almost every other practice.

      I may be missing something here but it seems to me that this is the type of farming practice that would only appeal to the types of farmjng clod who likes to spend their time sitting around on the back of a ute drinking beer. Ummm….

      /sarc

      • Stuart Munro. 8.2.1

        My accountant mate reckons there's been a huge loss of skill across the industry – folk with poor understanding of animals and animal welfare, when traditionally, because a lot of NZers grew up on or around farms they used to have some idea of what they were doing. He attributes the mycoplasma spread largely to this lack of what was once common sense.

        One thing that can’t be laid on farmers though, is that sheep aren’t nearly as profitable as they were, with synthetics crowding out wool, and the loss of access to English markets with the EU. So cows became relatively more profitable in spite of causing much more damage to the ground.

        We should have some ag institutes working on the problem, but the Key Kleptocracy, with its usual brilliance shut half of them down.

        • greywarshark 8.2.1.1

          Point – the synthetics are going to be going downno so can we encourage sheep farmers to operate on lower hills, crop the flats, and plant trees on the high part, some for basic wood, some for furniture and hardwood, some for feed for the critters, and some for permanent grabbing onto slippy land, with some flowering things in between for bees, and fruiting things here too for the boids. Good stuff, way to go. yes And I forgot to mention, grants to farmers to do the right thing, returnable on farm sale or diversion of ownership, but reducing by 10% each decade.

          • Stuart Munro. 8.2.1.1.1

            We'll have synthetics as long as we want them (they can use cellulose as a feedstock instead of oil), though the packaging will decline a bit given some sensible regulation. But in a world crying out for sustainability and authenticity NZ isn't even producing utilitarian things like harakeke denim – though we know it works .

            These farmers are last dinosaur types – non-adaptive. The council or government have a case against them in Rylands v Fletcher, and the SPCA can likely do them for calving in mud like that. Come to that, one drone flight, subtitled in Chinese and stuck on WeChat "Fonterra suppliers grazing their cows in mud" would have companies drop these suppliers like a hot potato – probably lose Fonterra half a billion in sales too.

            I agree about helping those who want to adapt though – maybe hemp or kudzu or bamboo as bioremediation units. I know they use white poplar in Europe but something with an end use would be preferable.

        • Blazer 8.2.1.2

          If sheep aren't profitable @ $35 a kilo for lamb…there's no hope.

      • New view 8.2.2

        Apart from the last paragraph of your comment I agree with you. There is still plenty of work required to farm with winter cropping but in these cases no common sense is being used. The crops being used like fodder beet can grow a massive amount of matter per hectare so farmers can pile a larger number of animals on than is possible with the traditional crops like rape and other brassicas . The problem is the weather. Good farming practice demands you shift the stock off when ground conditions are wet. These incompetent farmers haven’t allowed for alternative grazing when required, and for the most part get away with it because the stock still do ok most of the time even though it looks appalling. Which it is. If these farmers can’t use common sense they need to be fined as an incentive for a managerial rethink.

    • weka 8.3

      My view is that this is wholly a problem of industrial farming models. It's not like winter cropping is new, so what has changed? Stocking rates, land management, and a model that insists on wringing every last penny out of the land. The number of dairy conversions obviously. A catchment might sustain one smaller dairy farm that winter crops, but not ten that are overstocked.

      Murihiku is basically a large series of interconnected water catchments and wetlands. Industrial dairying should never have been allowed there.

      The winter cropping issue is ambulance at the bottom for the cliff stuff, and it's significant that this is what might get people to take notice. I actually feel angry with Southlanders as well as the farmers for letting it get to this point. NZ as a whole too. Everyone got upset when the dirty river stuff hit the headlines a few years ago, but that was decades in the making and many weren't paying attention to the people who were trying to stop it all those years.

      From a sustainability perspective, and by that I mean actual sustainability where the land is managed in ways that don't degrade it over long periods of time but enhance it, the only solution is to convert a lot of those farms away from dairy, and the ones that remain to use regenag models. We're a long way from that, so in the meantime we go for the low hanging fruit to try and stop the destruction from continuing. This isn't just a water or animal welfare issue, it's also a soil issue.

      What will most likely happen is that farmers will be encouraged off winter stocking, and the status quo will otherwise remain. This is far better than nothing, but it's still not addressing the core issue.

      Alison Dewes has apparently been doing the work on supporting farmers to work with better conventional techniques. These farmers are leading the way and are a good bridge between the industrial model and the regenag model.

      https://twitter.com/alison_dewes/status/1152316649589972992

  9. Obtrectator 9

    Once all that bare ground dries out, and an extreme-weather wind blows up … hello dustbowl.

    Oh, and dare I say that, at this rate, CAFOs are just around the corner?

    • greywarshark 9.1

      Not to detract from above, but elucidate. CAFOs –

      https://www.myfearlesskitchen.com/what-is-a-cafo/

      Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation.

      Then the other thing you mention that is one of the people's worries Ob – that bare ground dries out, and an extreme-weather wind blows up … hello dustbowl.

      It's interesting that they had dustbowls in the USA that were about the same time as the Great Depression. I think we know a bit more than then, but the wilful ignorance of those who could lead and persuade a better practice, is noticeable in its immensity. Perhaps your concern for improvement can tip the balance!

  10. greywarshark 11

    The cattle in the image – are they showing a hierarchy of behaviour, one lot has a chance at the hay, then the second lot that we see hanging back go forward? Normally they would get food and go off, lie down and chew it for a while, but where would they lie in those conditions? Farmers should spend their days with their herds I think.

  11. mike 12

    farmer may need a another tax payer bail out

  12. Ian 13

    So it's OK for activists to roam around farms in the middle of a Micro plasma Bovis outbreak ,tresspassing on private property , trying to take photos of cows and mud.I take my hat off to those gentlemen that kept an eye on those troublemakers and made sure they kept their noses clean. As for the local court jester,the Southland folk seem very tolerant of their resident clown.

    • Incognito 13.1

      Ian, if you go for that angle you need to weaponise your words more and militarise your mind. For example, don’t say “take photos of cows” but say “shoot pictures of target objects”; don’t say “roam around” but say “reconnaissance” or “spy”; don’t say “trespassing on private property” but say “entering or invading enemy territory”. Just a few handy tips for next time 😉

      • greywarshark 13.1.1

        Lol incognito – that's saying what he is thinking – we would bet ten chocolate fish on it.

  13. Pretty horrific first video,… it really was.

    The second was a breath of fresh air, ' all life is sacred, '… so in other words while they are here under our stewardship we care for them. The program in marginal guts and valleys with the planting of native species and even some exotic nut and fruit trees , the use of the practices Alan Savory has advocated , has shown it can be done. Possibly even adapted somewhat to the larger stations and hill country using slightly different modes.

    Really appreciated the article.

  14. David Mac 15

    The rise of cheap, clever, camera equipped drones and video sharing platforms are making it harder for the chronic exploiters to hide.

    I think we need to be wary that it may not be an epidemic, we've found ways to peek over in the gully behind the shed, down by the river etc.

    The farmers that give a damn, those that invest good time and money to give a damn, they want the rats ratted out too.

  15. Heather Tanguay 16

    All power to you Robert, these are shocking pictures for the Clean, Green image of New Zealand portrayed by the Fonterra adverts. I dislike the Fonterra adverts so much. For too long this disgusting practise has been allowed to continue and the pollution to waterways enhanced. The dire conditions for the cows is appalling.

  16. Grumpy 17

    Anyone wanting to see the future of environmentally visionary dairy farming would do worse than to look at Jon Sullivan’s setup in Harihari of all places. Total emphasis on stock welfare and the resulting return to show for it.

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  • 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
    3 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
    3 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
    3 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
    3 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 ...
    3 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
    4 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
    4 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
    4 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
    5 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
    5 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
    5 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 ...
    5 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
    6 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
    6 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
    6 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 ...
    6 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
    6 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
    6 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
    7 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 ...
    7 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
    7 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

  • 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
    2 days 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
    3 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
    7 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
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