Labour received some stick in comments on my previous post for its stance on the Social Welfare (Commencement of Benefits) Amendment Bill. It is unfortunate but there was some scepticism about how it would vote. I am pleased to note that Labour opposed the bill strenuously and attempted to improve the bill behind the scenes although these attempts were eventually futile.
To recap the bill’s purpose was to change the definition of stand down period in the Social Security Act 1964. The law as enacted in 1998 clearly stated that relevant benefits started on the day the stand down period ended but administrative practice started those benefits the day after.
The previous law was paradoxically also passed under urgency. A select committee process is important so that issues and mistakes in the drafting can be fixed.
The use of urgency on this occasion is, to be frank, appalling and a constitutional disgrace. The problem was discovered 18 months ago. The bill is very brief. If there was such a problem the bill could have been introduced months ago and a full select committee process gone through.
The use of urgency is especially appalling because the bill has retrospective effect. The right of beneficiaries to insist that the law be applied has been taken away from them and instead the current view of the executive on what the law should say has replaced the clear and unambiguous words of the Act.
My view could be discounted because I am a Labour aligned left wing blogger. But David Farrar agrees. His comment about the bill was:
I would have though if practice doesn’t match the law, then it is the practice you should change – no[t] the law.
Even Cameron Slater is opposed to the Bill. He said:
You might expect me to take the position that beneficiaries don’t deserve the money, and they shouldn’t get it. But that’s not on. A deal is a deal…
You can’t just legislate your way out of it when you made a mistake. What sort of example does that set?
Retrospective legislation is inconsistent with the rule of law. There is nothing especially compelling about this problem so as to justify the evil of retrospective legislation (indeed, the especially evil evil of retrospectively stripping citizens of a right conferred to them under the law). The solution to this problem is to amend prospectively, and to meet the Crown’s obligations. This is how the rule of law is supposed to work. Any attempts to present this retrospective legislation as simply clearing up a problem ought to be opposed. Waldron noted of purportedly “curative” retrospective legislation that:
Often it is a way of covering up or avoiding the embarrassment of administrative irregularity — pretending it did not happen, and depriving the citizen of the remedies that would otherwise be associated with its occurrence.
That is what the Government is seeking to achieve here. It is deplorable.
The justification for the bill, that there would be lots and lots of people claiming money, had never been tested. There was no regulatory impact statement, and the Departmental Disclosure Statement is almost completely bereft of meaningful detail.
Carmel Sepuloni attempted to have the bill amended so that a six week period would be allowed for all intending applicants to apply for arrears. Labour would then have supported the bill. It would still suck, just not as much as before. At least individuals would have had an opportunity to file their application. Instead of this the rights of an individual to be treated in accordance with the law as it existed at the time has been retrospectively taken away under urgency.
One of the roles of the opposition is to improve things and if this had been achieved then all strength to them. That this Government refused to allow even this modest change reinforces how appalling the measure is.
The really sneaky thing is that the Government tried to slip the change through under separate “remedial” legislation. Kay Brerton spotted the attempt and submitted against it. But for her vigilance and perseverance the change may have been slipped through without notice. Interestingly the drafting under that bill did not have retrospective effect. Perhaps this was to be introduced by way of SOP.
To finish here is film of some impassioned speeches by Carmel Sepuloni and Jan Logie about the bill.
The National government definitely thinks they are above the law having ignored 2 court decisions and now changing the law to be right – sounds like a dictatorship!
I have no idea why people like FJK so much, but they do.
I’m in Northland. There are plenty of people up here how love FJK. They’re generally older, wealthier and comfortable. They characterise the poor and Maori as undeserving, lazy and criminal.
“They’re generally older, wealthier and comfortable” bloody baby boomer’s who had the best of this country and there holding x and y to ransom fjk brighter future was never for x and y
Focussing on the wrong thing, Nats or JK are not that popular, it just that labour are deeply unpopular, Nats seen as the by far the better of two average options
Thanks for the invitation Micky 😀 i assume you agree with my first point but here you go
Pretty much agree with tone of blog, retrospective legislation is not just, Saying that labour has been known to use this tactic on a few occasions, electoral financing if my memorary serves me right, was not the foreshore and seabird issue of a similar ilk. Saying that two wrongs don’t make a right, national should be the party that respects property and contract rights, The left are far more comfortable in tramping over these rights.
The rest by their consistent actions of rolling over BORA tests, Crown Law advice, and reasonable time for the Parliamentary Counsel’s Office to do their job, are indeed Constitutional Morons.
But they are our morons who are less unpopular than the morons on the other side, hence jk is your prime minister and national is your government, and i suggest this will be so be for at least another 2 terms
Where was the flood of outrage when an even more despicable retraction of government promises was imposed retrospectively on the sadly cheated ratepayers of Kaipara?
Kaipara was shocking too. The government and council are making the rules to suit themselves and public are powerless within the decision making process are then powerless when the poor effects from the government or their officials poor decisions are inflicted on them and they have to reap the consequences.
The Mangawhai Ratepayers and Residents Association chairman has at least 500 local residents refusing to pay an estimated $1 million in rates this year because the Kaipara District Council secretly ran up an unsustainable $58 million debt building a sewage treatment scheme for about 2000 people who own homes here. The scheme has virtually bankrupted the council, which was forced to resign three months ago.
But many locals still face rates increases this year of about 40 per cent. Rates have more than doubled for some and several residents told the Weekend Heraldthey would sell if they could.
John Brown, who lives one street back from Rogan, is reeling from a 38 per cent increase in his rates bill to $3052. His five kids, now aged 13 to 25, have grown up at their Mangawhai bach over the past 24 years and Brown loves the place but he’s almost had enough.
Joel Cayford has a good history of the issue on his blog – Reflections on Auckland Planning. As he has a property in Mangawhai he has been involved in the dispute since the beginning.
A primary issue is that the Kaipara Council did NOT following council procedures when committing to this spend. And the project did not meet the council criteria for such a commitment, and the decision was made in close sessions if IRC.
John Brown, who lives one street back from Rogan, is reeling from a 38 per cent increase in his rates bill to $3052. His five kids, now aged 13 to 25, have grown up at their Mangawhai bach over the past 24 years and Brown loves the place but he’s almost had enough.
Oh, the poor fellow has a rates bill on what’s presumably his second home that’s not an awful lot more than that of an average dwelling in Whanganui.
//
@Joe90 – You’re missing the point. Whether you are a beneficiary, a prisoner on Christmas Island or someone who owns a bach, the law should be the law, and processes should be followed.
It shouldn’t be about judging who ever is effected and make it about the victims being deserving enough to have proper laws and processes given to them. Under law everyone should be treated the same in regards to what rights are afforded to them.
Whether it is about the government underpaying beneficiaries, or the Kaipara ouncil in closed sessions running up 58 million dollars of debt (which also sailed by the auditing bodies with zero red flags). Likewise on Christmas Island it is not about what the victim did or did not do, it is about what the Australian government is doing, what Serco is doing and what our government is doing about it.
By all means neck auditors and councillors who deceive rate payers but really, would Mr Brown be reeling had the expected boom eventuated and he and other land owners pocketed large tax free gains.
Bit harsh joe90. It’s always a problem for little settlements to upgrade water and sewerage from the old simple systems of rainwater off the roof into a tank and septic tanks for sewerage.
The job was too much for a small Council that I bet wanted to give the impression it knew what it was doing. It is the fault of Labour? I may be corrected here. in changing to general competency for Council’s spending. There should be a line drawn in the sand for Councils, with an overview from central govt and a local referendum explaining. This would stop Councils from building infrastructure more expensive in design than is appropriate because some pushy well connected people had big ideas. It would also limit huge dams of dubious cost effectiveness, and definite environmentally detrimental impact.
In Nelson we are getting the same architects to design a new airport terminal as designed Wellington’s leaning into the wind one. I hope they concentrate on the basics and don’t add unnecessary fancy touches that will have to be paid for by the airlines/passengers. Our present has to be changed for earthquake strengthening reasons.
A bit harsh, yup, but TBH my piss and vinegar levels are running pretty damn high.
Whanganui is close to $100 million in the hole because of an ongoing waste water treatment saga that goes back more than a decade – from mates looking after mates to design fuckups to stenches to more fuckups to delays to cost over runs to stenches with no end in sight. The ongoing rates burden on a small low wage low property value community with a high level of fixed incomes is huge and slowly strangling us.
Yet even though I’m forced to contribute to the damn saga through an ever increasing general levy I have absolutely no chance of ever ditching my own on site treatment system and connecting to the city waste water scheme.
Joe90
Sounds like a never ending saga. Awful. These problems should result for small communities in being able to draw on expertise from a university with a specialist dept handling this problem. Sounds like the wheel has to be invented independently by each community. A vicious circle. I guess you would be more resigned about paying if only the stench could be banished.
Lara
I don’t think Joe90 is thinking that it easier for you who live there all the time.
But someone who has a bach as an extra house might regard it as disposable and not complain so hard if there was a big rise in value, and a nice profit.
Unlike yourself, stuck with a rising bill for rates that sounds as if it will be high for some years. Even higher property valuations would be of little ‘value’ to a permanent home owner lumped with rocketing rates.
Last week the High Court ruled that the council acted illegally, both in starting the scheme in 2005 and increasing its cost by about $22 million the following year without telling ratepayers.
Justice Paul Heath said the council’s debts to banks which lent the money must be repaid and the court had no power to overturn a law passed in November last year which validated the council’s incorrectly set rates.
But he urged the commissioners to consider alternatives to steep rate increases to pay down the debt, including renegotiating the loans and taking legal action against those responsible.
Justice Heath referred to Auditor-General Lyn Provost’s report on the Mangawhai scheme last November, in which she apologised unreservedly for the auditing failures, and to the Local Government select committee’s report, which urged accountability for any parties found to be at fault.
Northland MP Mike Sabin – who has campaigned for the Office of the Auditor-General to pay the increased cost of the scheme instead of ratepayers – said the Auditor-General’s long delay in investigating the problem had pushed key events out of legal reach.
He said Mangawhai property owners had alerted the Auditor-General to the problem in 2009 yet it took three years to start an inquiry in late 2012. The inquiry, which was supposed to take six months, dragged on for 20 months and the final report was made public on December 3, days after the expiry of the statute of limitations for the council’s November 2007 decision.
———————————————————————————————————–
so it really has got nothing to do with ‘increasing values of the properties’ n such, it has all to do with people overstepping their powers, racking up debt and then expecting others to pay them, in this case the rate payers and the tax payer.
What happened after that to Kaipara… Did they call in government cronies to run the council and what happened to the rate payers … it has all gone quiet on the media front?
AFAIK there are still government appointed commissioners in charge up here.
We have not had local body elections for years.
Those who were in power when the debt was racked up have never been bought to justice. They resigned I believe. The whole thing was swept under the carpet.
They broke the law, but because they did it to the tune of millions of dollars (not for their own benefit but still, it was done illegally) they get off.
See if you run up debt as a government or council official you are not charged with misuse. If you were an employee such as a money trader and go awol and run up massive company liabilities for shares, guess what they prosecute you under the law.
Big double standard for workers against government.
In my view those in government or council office should be asked to have a higher standard – they have a lot more resources afforded to them and more innocent people are effected by their bad decisions.
i would like to know how Winz calculated the amounts that beneficiaries have to re-fund, whenever WINZ is of the opinion that they mis-calculated the benefit.
The day from the stand down period, or the day after that. 🙂
Lovers of the Key govt will simply claim that ‘those deadbeat dopey unemployed don’t deserve any better’. So hit them harder. Wonder how many of their children have been unemployed at some time. Bet there would be plenty who have been affected by this.
Annette King made an outstanding speech too. It was so good I thought it might actually have an effect on Tolley, but she had left the chamber. It put everything in perspective. Can’t link to it ,sorry.
MS I’m pleased Labour fought the bill but they still deserved all the stick they got in your previous post. And they will continue to get it until it becomes clear (via consistent advocacy and fighting for beneficiary rights, both in the House and in policy) that they do truely give a damn and aren’t just using us for political point scoring when it suits them.
Politicians can do almost nothing that serves to undermine democracy and the rule of law than to pass retrospective legislation.
Even sending in the tanks and killing protestors is, in the big picture, less harmful to the fabric of society than what this government is now doing on a regular basis.
In the trials that followed WW II the morality of the proceedings was dictated by who had won. A very courageous woman philosopher, Hannah Arendt, a Jewess who had herself had to escape the pogroms tried to point out, in reporting on the trial of Adolf Eichmann, that inventing a crime that did not exist in order to be able to send Eichmann to the gallows, put the so-called western democracies on the same page as the National Socialists.
Canada and UK have judiciaries that are much more courageous and independent than ours, which is a pusillanimous gaggle of brown-noses sucking up to power, and those countries are having serious discussion about assaults on the rule of law. High on the agenda is the repugnancy of retrospective legislation.
Retrospective legislation is the ultimate counsel of despair. It is the device of the caliphate, of the totalitarian, of the bully, of the bigot, of the terrorist who has come to power. It is synonymous with Zimbabwe, Myanmar, former South Africa, Republican America, modern Russia, and now, New Zealand. One thing that must be said for Key, once it was determined that we were in a race for the bottom, he was the perfect choice for leader.e
Being a simple cheater or liar is not usually considered a desirable feature in a political leader.
But changing the clear, printed black-and-white rules after the game has been played, and redistributing the winnings and losses so your friends take all and the trusting fools who relied on laws, promises and rules lose all – that is light-years beyond simply being a cheater or liar.
Such are the people now in power in our country.
It was such a lovely country. How did this happen?
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Image credit:45 Things I Wish I Knew Before Starting a Blog I notice a few regulars no longer allow public access to the site counters. This may happen accidentally when the blog format is altered. ...
So, more on the possibility of a Government of National Unity (GNU) in Britain.Two things, first. The numbers in parliament make things very difficult. And anyone who is saying X will happen or Y is impossible is spinning. We can not tell and will not know until votes are actually ...
The government is promising tough action against climate change via the Zero Carbon Bill and a strengthened ETS. Meanwhile, the Overseas investment Office is granting foreign coal companies permission to expand coal mining:Coal Action Network Aotearoa has slammed a decision by the Overseas Investment Office to allow Bathurst Coal to ...
Don't You Dare Let Them Down, Jacinda! Many New Zealanders, especially young New Zealanders, continue to believe that change – real change – is possible. Do we have criticisms about the way in which Jacinda’s government has gone about “transforming” New Zealand? Of course we do. But the very fact ...
. . With some historical and present context, it should become readily apparent to Pakeha that the occupation at Ihumātao is not a free-for-all conflict for any and everyone to become involved in. First, some important dates: . 1840 . The year in which the Treaty of Waitingi was signed. ...
Forestry Minister Shane Jones is considering reining in on conversions of farmland to forestry, and also issued a warning to foreign-owned forestry companies that make up nearly 75 per cent of the industry. He said too many foreign companies had not provided enough access for domestic processors to get timber. ...
Speaking to Radio NZ, New Zealand First leader Winston Peters said the tightening of the parental category visa is a direct result of the Party’s coalition negotiations with the Labour Party. He said the new changes switch the financial onus from the parent moving to New Zealand to the child ...
The Coalition Government is set to cut red tape in the building and construction sector in an effort to allow more houses to be built, including prefabricated houses. The changes will enable the mass factory production of "high quality" buildings, slash the likely number of building inspections for factory produced ...
Since coming into Government, we’ve worked hard to tackle homelessness and make sure everyone has a warm, dry home. And today, on World Homeless Day, we want to report back and update you on our progress so far. ...
New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has hit back at National Party leader Simon Bridges who criticized the Coalition Government’s approach to crime, and said that the latter isn't credible in his attack on the Government over gang recruitment. "We've got as massive drug problem in this country. It is ...
New Zealand Mānuka honey exporters have welcomed an initiative by the Coalition Government to help secure the term “mānuka honey” to be used exclusively by Kiwi exporters, ensuring that our multimillion-dollar industry is protected. Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones had recently announced that a Provincial Growth Funding of $5.7 ...
Political commentator Mike Hosking has labelled New Zealand First leader Winston Peters as “the voice of reason in a government soft on drugs”, for the Party’s stance on drug testing at music festivals. “If common sense is worth a vote, Winston Peters is quids in,” Mr Hosking said. The Labour ...
Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau has announced Provincial Growth Funding to ensure work opportunities in Turangi and Whanganui, through its skills and employment programme, Te Ara Mahi. A fund of $500,000 will go to Rafting NZ in Turangi for a 16-week river guide training course to train ...
Treasury has shown that the Coalition Government has a $7.5 billion surplus, which is $4 billion higher than what was expected in the 2019 Budget unveiled last May. It is also $2 billion higher than the actual surplus unveiled this time last year, and at a size that has not ...
Official Information Act figures released to NZME show there were 350 assaults on officers in the year to the end of June, 79 more than the year before. The increase in attacks have sparked calls for more legal protection for first responders to be enacted. The assaults included officers being ...
“Nobody wants to see babies uplifted”, this was the pronouncement of Minister for Children Hon. Tracey Martin as her department, Oranga Tamariki, faces multiple inquiries into the number of babies being taken from their families. “But a baby can die with a single punch, “the Minister continued. “So sometimes, Oranga ...
We're making progress on tackling the long-term challenges: from homelessness, to strengthening border security, to bringing banking back New Zealand's small towns. ...
Associate Transport Minister Shane Jones has backed the ambitious plan to move Auckland’s port to Northport, at Whangarei harbour, which he says will be the “King Kong of infrastructure”. The plan is part of the recommendations of a six-person independent working group, which has recommended the Ports of Auckland be ...
A six-member independent working group selected the option of moving Auckland’s port to Northport, in Whangarei, ahead of other options. In what could be New Zealand’s most ambitious infrastructure project yet, a major expansion of the Marsden Point port could happen within 15 years. The project, officially called the “Upper ...
The final Electricity Price Review recommended prohibiting prompt payment discounts but allowing “reasonable” late fees. The findings of this review was welcomed by the Coalition Government, but they hope companies will follow through with its recommendations without regulations needed to be passed. Meridian Energy had already stopped prompt payment discounts, ...
Fletcher Tabuteau, Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF)through its skills and employment programme, Te Ara Mahi,will invest nearly $600,000 to ensure work opportunities for locals in Turangia and Whanganui, Parliamentary Under Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau announced today. “I’m pleased to announce the PGF ...
An export-led economy is one of New Zealand First’s key principles, and our commitment to achieving this is shown by the continuing skyrocketing demand for our beef and sheep meat exports. Beef + Lamb New Zealand's New Season Outlook 2019-20 report forecasts beef, lamb and mutton prices to lift from ...
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today in Gisborne an investment of $17.27m into bringing “world-leading” food-growing technology and the creation of more than 100 new jobs in the East Coast city. The funding comes from the Provincial Growth Fund, and included a $15 million loan to LeaderBrand, a ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development More than 100 people in Tairāwhiti’s Tolaga Bay will benefit from two employment initiatives supported by the Provincial Growth Fund, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones and Employment Minister Willie Jackson announced today. “Tolaga Bay is an incredibly tight-knit community, but one in ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is supporting Gisborne business Leaderbrand to produce salad vegetables year round and create more jobs in the Tairāwhiti region, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today. “Our support for Leaderbrand will help them build large greenhouses ...
“Nobody wants to see babies uplifted”, this was the pronouncement of Minister for Children Hon. Tracey Martin as her department, Oranga Tamariki, faces multiple inquiries into the number of babies being taken from their families. “But a baby can die with a single punch, “the Minister continued. “So sometimes, Oranga ...
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones has praised the promise by New Zealand’s biggest banks not to close any provincial branches while the Coalition Government trials regional banking hubs across the country. The Minister said the announce was the “first sign of hope for regional communities”, many of which have ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, New Zealand First Leader New Zealand First is proud to have delivered an upgrade of the SuperGold Card website and a new smartphone app, which will help unlock the full benefits of the SuperGold Card for 750,000 New Zealand seniors.Party Leader Rt Hon Winston Peters, ...
Delivering a key election campaign promise, New Zealand First is proud to have accomplished a long overdue upgrade of the SuperGold Card today. At an event in Auckland, New Zealand First leader Winston Peters joined Minister for Seniors Hon. Tracey Martin in unveiling the new website and smartphone app which ...
Another busy week, from speaking with world leaders on the world stage about climate change, to equipping our school leavers with everything they need to get ahead in life. ...
New Zealand First MP Shane Jones says Air New Zealand has "an obligation to look after Kiwis", and urged the national carrier not to hike up their prices after Jetstar airline announced their withdrawal from regional flights this week. The Provincial Champion also expressed his disappointment at Jetstar’s decision on ...
Fletcher Tabuteau, Under Secretary for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) will help fund a new dredge for the Port of Greymouth to ensure the regional fishing fleet have a reliable and productive harbour, Parliamentary Undersecretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau announced today “Last year the movements of ...
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones said he was "immensely disappointed" at the withdrawal of the Jetstar airline from regional routes. He has also warned national carrier Air New Zealand not to capitalise on the Australian budget airline’s decision by “gouging” regional air travellers. "Air New Zealand has historically challenged ...
International credit ratings agency Moody's gave a glowing assessment of New Zealand’s economy in its latest report, which ranks the country’s economic strength as "very high" while saying growth remains "robust". The report says it's expected New Zealand's economy will grow between 2.5 and 3 percent in the next few ...
The Coalition Government is allocating nearly $6 million to a campaign to stop Australian beekeepers marketing their products as "mānuka" honey. This move comes after Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones accused Australian honey producers of trying to steal what was indigenous to New Zealand. "The Aussies are trying to ...
The Provincial Growth Fund has provided $400,000 to Great South to help the agency drive Southland's regional economic development aspirations. The funding will allow Great South, which is Southland's economic development agency, to appoint a portfolio manager and a project support adviser, who will provide project management expertise and support ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister of Forestry The One Billion Trees Fund has just hit two significant milestones that will create more than 7,500 hectares of new forest cover, Forestry Minister Shane Jones says. Speaking at a celebratory dinner at Parliament to mark 100 years of the New Zealand Forestry Service, Minister ...
The Government is moving swiftly to change the law to improve the welfare and pastoral care of students living in university halls of residence and other tertiary hostels. Cabinet has agreed to several changes, including creating a new mandatory Code of Practice that sets out the duty of pastoral care ...
The Minister for Conservation Eugenie Sage has launched a new comprehensive trapping guide for community trappers to help them protect our native birds, plants and other wildlife, at Zealandia in Wellington today. ‘A practical guide to trapping’, has been developed by the Department of Conservation (DOC), and was launched during ...
Associate Health Minister Julie Anne Genter welcomes PHARMAC’s move to improve access to long-acting reversible contraception (LARCs). PHARMAC has today announced it will fund the full cost of Mirena and Jaydess for anyone seeking long term contraception, lifting previous restrictions on access to Mirena. “I welcome women having greater choices ...
The Government has approved the next stage of a major redevelopment of Taranaki Base Hospital, which will deliver new and improved facilities for patients. Health Minister Dr David Clark has announced details of a $300 million dollar project to build a new East Wing at the New Plymouth hospital. It ...
Extra funding will allow Rural Support Trusts to help farming families, says Minister for Rural Communities and Agriculture Damien O’Connor. “I know that rural families are worried about some of the challenges facing them, including the ongoing uncertainty created by the Mycoplasma bovis outbreak. “Those concerns sit alongside ongoing worries ...
Thank you for the opportunity to be here to present certificates to the 16 graduates who have completed a beekeeping course delivered by the Howard League. Let us start by acknowledging Auckland Prison’s Deputy Prison Director Tom Sherlock, and Acting Assistant Regional Commissioner of Corrections Northern Region Scott Walker - ...
Finance Minister Grant Robertson leaves this weekend to attend the APEC Finance Ministers meeting in Santiago, Chile. Discussions between APEC Finance Ministers at the meeting will include the effects of the current global economic uncertainty, risks for APEC economies and sustainable development of the region. While at APEC Grant Robertson ...
The Minister for Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio says for Pacific people, language can be a source of strength. It can help ground us and give us confidence. When we speak them, our languages provide us with an immediate and intimate access to our identity and our story - and ...
The Coalition Government has announced an action plan to improve the wellbeing of disabled New Zealanders by addressing inequalities in play, active recreation and sport. The initiative includes training to develop a workforce that understands the needs of children and young people with a range of impairments, advocacy for fit ...
The construction sector is being freed up to allow more homes to be built more quickly as the Government cuts through some of the red tape of the Building Act. “Every New Zealander deserves a warm, dry, safe home and old inefficiencies in the Building Act make building slow and ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has welcomed further details on the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall’s visit to New Zealand next month. Their Royal Highnesses will visit New Zealand from 17-23 November – their third joint visit to New Zealand and first in four years. They arrive in Auckland ...
Minister of State for Trade and Export Growth and Minister of Agriculture, Damien O’Connor, heads to Thailand today to attend the final Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Ministerial meeting, as negotiations enter their final stages. “The RCEP Agreement would anchor New Zealand in a regional agreement that covers 16 countries, ...
Pacific young people living in the Hawke’s Bay, Southland and Otago regions will have access to support services that have proved successful in helping young people find new earning and learning opportunities. “Tupu Aotearoa is about changing Pacific young peoples’ lives. Our young people are talented, they are smart, they ...
Introduction As the Minister for ACC I thank you all for the work that you do supporting New Zealanders in their literally most vulnerable moments. From those who hold people’s lives in their hands, to the people who research technique, technology and trends, your work is highly valued. A special ...
Notes prepared for speeches in Christchurch – Wednesday 9 October 2019 Today’s topic, “trends and opportunities for the New Zealand economy,” is certainly one getting a great deal of commentary at the moment. Looking across the media landscape lately you’ll notice we aren’t the only ones having this discussion. There ...
Minister of Health Dr David Clark and Associate Minister of Health Peeni Henare say this year’s World Mental Health Day theme is a reminder of why the Government’s work on mental health is so important. “This year the World Federation for Mental Health has made suicide prevention the main theme ...
Associate Arts, Culture and Heritage Minister Carmel Sepuloni will represent the government at Australia’s Meeting of Cultural Ministers in Adelaide this week. “This year’s meeting is special because New Zealand is expected to become an International Member of the Meeting of Cultural Ministers at this Australian forum,” Carmel Sepuloni said. “The meeting is an opportunity to ...
The Greater Christchurch Claims Resolution Service has resolved 608 insurance and EQC claims in its first year in operation, Minister Megan Woods has announced. The government service, which celebrates its first birthday today, provides a one stop shop to help Cantabrians still battling to get their homes repaired or rebuilt ...
Today’s topic, “trends and opportunities for the New Zealand economy,” is certainly one getting a great deal of commentary at the moment. Looking across the media landscape lately you’ll notice we aren’t the only ones having this discussion. There has been an increasing amount of attention paid to the outlook ...
The Government is acting swiftly to strengthen NZTA’s regulatory role following a review into the Transport Agency, and Ministry of Transport’s performance as its monitor, Transport Minister Phil Twyford said today. An independent review by Martin Jenkins has found NZTA failed to properly regulate the transport sector under the previous ...
The Netherlands and New Zealand have a long-standing and close relationship based on many shared interests and values. We value the rule of law, our democracies, and multilateralism. And we value our environment – at home and globally. Right now there are major global challenges in all of these areas – ...
The Government is putting right a decade’s worth of underpayment to nurses, doctors and other health workers, says Health Minister Dr David Clark. Initial sampling of District Health Boards payroll records has found that around $550-$650 million is owed to DHB staff to comply with the Holidays Act. It’s expected ...
A strong surplus and low debt show the economy is performing well, and means the Government is in a good position to meet the challenges of global economic uncertainty. “The surplus and low levels of debt show the economy is in good shape. This allows the Government to spend more ...
New applications from mining company OceanaGold to purchase land in Waihi for new tailings ponds associated with its gold mines have been approved. Minister of Finance Grant Robertson and Associate Minister of Finance David Parker considered the applications under the Overseas Investment Act. Earlier this year, applications from OceanaGold to ...
New Zealanders in Tūranganui-a-Kiwa / Poverty Bay will witness Māori, Pākehā and Pacific voyaging traditions come together today as the Tuia 250 Voyage flotilla assembles for the first time, Māori Crown Relations: Te Arawhiti Minister Kelvin Davis says. “Tuia 250 is a national commemoration and an opportunity for honest conversations ...
Minister for Trade and Export Growth David Parker leaves tomorrow for Dubai, London and Berlin for a series of meetings to advance New Zealand’s trade interests. In Dubai he will visit New Zealand’s Pavilion at Expo 2020 where construction is underway. There he will meet Minister of State for International Cooperation, Her ...
Confirmation that PHARMAC will fund two new cancer drugs is further evidence of the good progress the Government is making to improve the treatment of New Zealand’s leading cause of death, Health Minister David Clark says. From 1 December PHARMAC will fund alectinib (Alecensa) for ALK positive advanced non-small cell ...
An additional $2.7 million has been announced for the Government Strategy for Women and Girls in Sport and Active Recreation on the first anniversary of the strategy’s launch. Sport and Recreation Minister Grant Robertson gave the opening address to the first Sport NZ Women + Girls Summit in Wellington today, ...
As part of its work to ensure businesses can get the skilled workers they need, the Coalition Government is re-opening and re-setting the Parent Category visa programme, Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway says. The move will: support skilled migrants who help fill New Zealand’s skills gaps by providing a pathway for ...
Minister of Defence Ron Mark has today announced Major General Evan Williams of the New Zealand Defence Force has been selected as the commander of a significant, longstanding peacekeeping mission in the Middle East. In December, Major General Williams takes over as Force Commander for the Multinational Force and Observers ...
A record number of nurses are now working to deliver health services to New Zealanders as the Government’s increased funding and new initiatives rebuild key workforces start to show results, Health Minister Dr David Clark says. • 1458 more DHB nurses since the Government took office • 106 more midwives ...
Farmer and former Nuffield scholar Mel Poulton has been appointed New Zealand’s Special Agricultural Trade Envoy, Minister for Trade and Export Growth, David Parker, and Minister of Agriculture, Damien O’Connor, announced today. The position supports key Government objectives, including raising the value of New Zealand agricultural goods and services. Mel is ...
New Zealand’s Pacific and Māori voyaging heritage is acknowledged and celebrated today as waka of the Tuia 250 voyage flotilla arrive in Tūranga / Gisborne. “Today we celebrate Tangata Whenua, the first people of Aotearoa, and the triumphs of the voyaging tradition that brought our ancestors here from Polynesia 1000 ...
“Fijian Language Week starts on Sunday and the theme reminds us how important it is that we each have something to anchor ourselves to, something that can help us pause and feel in control in a rapidly changing world,” says Minister for Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio. “Family, culture, faith, ...
The Government is establishing an Airspace Integration Trials Programme to support the safe testing and development of advanced unmanned aircraft and accelerate their integration into the aviation system, Research, Science and Innovation Minister Megan Woods announced today. The Government will work with leading, innovative aviation industry partners to test and ...
Transport Minister Phil Twyford today welcomed the NZ Transport Agency’s decision to fund urgent safety improvements and confirm the designation of the Ōtaki to North of Levin highway. Safety upgrades will be made along 23.4km of the existing state highway, running along SH1 from the end of the Peka Peka ...
New Zealand playing its part in Asia-Pacific and globally are behind changes announced today to the Coalition Government’s three year refugee quota policy, Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway says. “We are proud to be a welcoming and inclusive nation committed to supporting some of the world’s most vulnerable people to rebuild ...
Creating thriving regions and inclusive local communities is the aim of the Welcoming Communities programme being rolled out across the country, says Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway today. A successful pilot of the scheme ran over the last 2 years led by Immigration New Zealand and involved ten councils across five regions ...
Takahē may be flightless but their population is flying high with the official count reaching 418 after a record breeding season that produced an estimated 65 juveniles, the Minister of Conservation Eugenie Sage announced today. “The population reaching a high of 418 is great news for takahē which were considered ...
New Zealand is today taking action to reduce the potent global warming hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) gases, Climate Minister James Shaw and Associate Environment Minister Eugenie Sage announced today. “The global agreement to reduce these potent greenhouse gases is another step in New Zealand’s commitment to reduce global warming. It is estimated ...
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: A pair of polls put pressure on the Labour Party, a wild night of weather in the North Island, and Shane Jones snapped brandishing a semi-automatic.Parliament resumes today after a fortnight recess, and MPs were given a welcome-back present in ...
Mandy Hager, the newly elected head of the New Zealand Society of Authors, is lobbying the government to improve the lot of writers - to no avail, despite the Prime Minister's championing of the arts. ...
Given the vast impacts that poor diet have had on global health, a deficit in nutrition education in medicine represents a big problem, writes Dr Jennifer Crowley. ...
Any time Olympian Luuka Jones needs advice or encouragement in her pursuit of more canoe slalom success, she doesn’t have to look far. Jones’ coach, Campbell Walsh, is also her partner. ...
Competition for the rights to broadcast sports matches involving NZ’s top teams has produced a bonanza for the sporting bodies, forcing media companies to be a lot more innovative. ...
The Wellington suburb’s successful opposition to a proposed Bottle-O shows how the system is biased towards communities with the organisation, capacity and resources to protest effectively, says Jenesa Jeram.For those unfamiliar with Wellington geography, Khandallah is a Very Nice place to live (Aucklanders: think Remuera). So when it was reported ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Humphery-Jenner, Associate Professor of Finance, UNSW The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission conducted an inquiry into mortgage pricing as recently as last year. Now Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has asked it to do another, broader one, in order to ensure the banks’ ...
Dr Bryce EdwardsThe results of the local government elections appear to show that New Zealanders are generally supportive of a more diverse range of representatives, having voted in greater numbers for candidates from traditionally under-represented groups. The elections have therefore modernised our councils in a small but very significant ...
The Inquiry has today published Minute No 21. This Minute sets out how the Inquiry intends to proceed given that the Attorney-General the Hon David Parker has agreed to extend the Inquiry’s reporting date by three months to 31 March 2020. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Grace Skrzypiec, Senior Lecturer, Flinders University Many Australian students don’t know the difference between banter and bullying, with some saying they joke about wishing their friend would “drown” or “die in a car crash”. More than 800 Australian students aged 11-16 took ...
But he did play a crucial role in helping journeyman Andy Foster knock over Justin Lester. Team Gone By Lunchtime size up the local elections, gaze plaintively at the dramas in the NZ First Party, and ask how bad the new poll is for Jacinda Ardern.Annabelle Lee-Mather, Ben Thomas and ...
In the fifth episode of Actually Interesting, The Spinoff’s monthly podcast exploring the effect Artificial Intelligence has on our lives, Russell Brown speaks to Ben Reid, executive director of the AI Forum, about the role of government in embracing and regulating AI.Subscribe to Actually Interesting via iTunes or listen on the player below.To ...
Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.New Zealand Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand.Today’s content by Dr Bryce Edwards.Local government Henry Cooke (Stuff): How to lose an election: Over-promise or under-deliver Simon Collins ...
By RNZ Pacific A Solomon Islands province has agreed to lease a large island to a Chinese developer to develop into a special economic zone, weeks after the country opened diplomatic ties with China. But already cracks abound; there has been no official announcement and the provincial premier says the ...
The New Zealand First MP and Minister Shane Jones is still backing the firearms ban, despite being pictured with what appears to be an AR-15 semi-automatic while holidaying in Asia. ...
Everyone needs to be concerned about the draft National Policy Statement on Urban Development that the Ministry for the Environment has released. It is incompatible with the spirit of transparency and inclusiveness. ...
Prodigal Son is a new crime procedural coming hot and fresh to TVNZ 1 on Mondays at 8.30pm.Jean Sergent has a few reasons why you should be watching it. If you like serial killer shows, Michael Sheen, dark drama, Michael Sheen, twisted family dynamics, or Michael Sheen – strap yourself ...
Voters in the 2019 local elections have elected the largest number of new mayors in 30 years, with 26 candidates set to don mayoral chains for the first time later this month. ...
A team of investigators dedicated to stamping out violent extremism online is being set up with the government announcing $17 million in funding over four years. ...
In a major boost to efforts to counter violent extremism on the internet, the Government has promised $17m over four years to the Censorship Compliance Unit. ...
The final dinner party on Married at First Sight NZ brought an ugly misogyny to light. But it was far from the first time sexism reared its head this season, writes Alex Casey.It began with a man being edited out of the show after his domestic violence charges came to ...
The Council of Licenced Firearms Owners (COLFO) is recommending members hold on to potentially illegal shotgun shells containing steel shot until the law banning certain types of ammunition is clarified. ...
New collaborative gifting platform Joyable is looking to shake up how we group-purchase gifts. Co-founders (and sisters) Rochelle Sheldon and Kimberley Crossman explain how their latest venture works. Joyable (not to be confused with the social anxiety-reducing app of the same name) is a somewhat left-field move for co-founder Rochelle ...
The extraordinary battle for the Tron has ended in a way no one quite saw coming, with the city relinquishing its stranglehold on the title of New Zealand’s most embarrassing council. Angela Cuming reports.The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a ...
On the eve of the announcement of the winner of the 2019 Booker prize, Spinoff books editor Catherine Woulfe outs herself as a giant know-nothing. Booker time. Tomorrow morning I will sit there refreshing Twitter like the drinking bird on The Simpsons. A winner will be announced. And I’ll be gripped ...
National's claim that things only went south when Phil Twyford took charge of transport is not supported by us at CEAC and we see that this begun in 2008 as we witnessed the change then while working as a partnership group with NZTA then. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brendan Churchill, Research Fellow in Sociology, University of Melbourne There’s an old maxim: not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted. But there are some things we should count, and gender and sexual diversity are ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Pollock, Climatologist, Australian Bureau of Meteorology Northern Australia is likely to see fewer cyclones than usual this season, but hot, dry weather will increase the risk of fire and heatwaves across eastern and southern Australia. The Bureau of Meteorology today released ...
We are in The Good Time for avocados. Alex Casey talked to an expert on how to make the most of it. It’s the most wonderful time of the year. A time when a new avocado headline is published somewhere in New Zealandeverysingleday. A time when it is ...
Sexual harassment and assault are an issue in all walks of life, but addressing the problem is particularly difficult when the perpetrator holds public office. Today campaigner Carrie Buckmaster launches a parliamentary petition calling for more transparency on the issue.The ongoing Labour Party scandal around handling of sexual harassment allegations ...
Dunedin’s new mayor Aaron Hawkins is the first official Green Party mayor in NZ and, arguably, the first to represent the city’s student population as much as its older residents. Josie Adams, who guessed he would win, asked him ten questions about his win.The Spinoff local election ...
Fisher & Paykel Healthcare (F&P) has upgraded its full year guidance again after gaining the right to sell its new full face mask in the United States. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Shadow foreign minister Penny Wong says Australia needs to “define the boundaries” of its engagement with China now the relationship between the two countries is in a new phase. Focusing on China policy in a ...
Canon Rugby in Focus: Ireland awaits an All Blacks team that will be well-rested. Perhaps too well-rested. Rested and ready, or a game short and not match fit. Those are the two scenarios that will have All Blacks fans fretting this week ahead of ...
With the government recently announcing a desire to help our cities grow up and out, leading New Zealand IoT expert Kriv Naicker today questioned whether New Zealand is falling behind in the use of smart city technology to help achieve this goal. ...
You famously said climate change was this generation’s nuclear-free moment. But when Extinction Rebellion uses the tactics of the Nuclear Free movement, you say you aren’t impressed. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Regina Jefferies, Affiliate, Andrew and Renata Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law, UNSW In the past five years, more than 95,000 people who arrived by plane have lodged a claim for asylum in Australia, new statistics show. Labor’s Immigration Spokesperson, Senator Kristina ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Karen Waller, PhD candidate, University of Sydney Organs from potential donors once rejected as being unsafe to transplant may not be as risky as once thought, new Australian research shows. Our study, published in the Medical Journal of Australia, suggests organs from ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Merrilyn Delporte, PhD Candidate, Queensland University of Technology Australia’s refugee policy has led to a two-track education system. Those processed offshore, and deemed refugees by the time they have arrived in Australia, are entitled to fee support for university. But the almost ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Marion Terrill, Transport and Cities Program Director, Grattan Institute Congestion charging should be introduced in Australia’s largest cities, as Grattan Institute’s latest report shows. Our analysis also finds that the people who commute to the Melbourne and Sydney CBDs by driving are ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David C. Ribar, Professorial Research Fellow, University of Melbourne Australia, like the United States, makes it hard for people who get benefits to stay on them. It’s not simply a matter of withdrawing benefits as people get jobs and work more hours ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ana Silkatcheva, Doctoral Candidate (Oriental Studies – Islamic Art and Archaeology), University of Oxford; Curatorial Researcher, Nicholson Collection, Chau Chak Wing Museum, University of Sydney In 2005, the Art Gallery of South Australia (AGSA) opened Australia’s first permanent galleries of Islamic art. ...
Council's can expected more pressure from their own ranks to tackle climate change with a new crop of young councillors determined to fight it head on. ...
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Analysis that hits the mark after a big weekend of local elections, new party poll released, and Dunedinites turn out to clean up in honour of killed student.By now, you probably know whether or not you have a new local ...
Would any of the politicians who opposed the marriage equality bill have voted differently if it had passed today? Greta Yeoman asked them.Just over five years ago, New Zealand politicians voted 77-44 to legalise gay marriage, making this country the 13th in the world to do so. Of the 44 ...
We have been on a collision course with freshwater in this country for over a century, writes Dr Jonathan West. Time to make some uncomfortable choices. ...
Spark Sport’s six year deal with New Zealand cricket has dealt another blow to Sky TV. The company’s share price has sunk to an all-time low and as Mark Jennings writes, its future existence depends on winning rugby rights. ...
Teenager Ella Benn has lost part of her left leg, and part of her right lung, to cancer. But with the guidance of a Paralympic legend, she's determined to be a swimming star in her own right. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The ALP has announced an inquiry into the head office of the NSW ALP, after weeks of shocking revelations at the Independent Commission against Corruption about scandals in the handling of donations. The review, announced ...
The new Canterbury Regional Council is set to have a 50-50 gender balance, a younger average age, and people from backgrounds including law, science, farming, insurance and landscape architecture. ...
Aucklanders did not turn out in their droves to vote for incumbent Phil Goff but nor did they embrace the erratic campaigning of challenger John Tamihere. ...
Four of NZ's six largest cities changed mayors on Saturday, three through incumbents being ousted at the local polls. The new crew now need to be the change they promised. ...
Hayden Donnell identifies who did well, and who got massively owned, in the 2019 local elections.The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism, click here.Most of these winners and losers lists fail to capture the nuances ...
Sophie Handford, one of the country's youngest new councillors, hadn't expected to get elected and was at a barn dance when she found out the results. ...
Towards banana republic status 
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+100
Deplorable and shady is an understatement!
You owe the government money = hounded to the ends of the earth.
Government owes you money = retrospective legislation under urgency.
These smirking villains have no shame, no honour and are unfit for the offices they hold.
Good speech by Jan Logie.
The National government definitely thinks they are above the law having ignored 2 court decisions and now changing the law to be right – sounds like a dictatorship!
There is getting to be a pattern here…
High in the polls = do whatever with impunity
One has to wonder when or if their voters will ever care about right vs wrong.
Or has NZ – defacto – become a corrupt state.
I’m not sure how accurate the polls are….. look at Northland even the conservatives have had enough.
+100…I dont think the polls are accurate at all….IN FACT DEEPLY SUS!
…and they are used as a PR weapon
…they put people off voting because they think it is hopeless
Polls are best ignored
I reckon they’re accurate.
I have no idea why people like FJK so much, but they do.
I’m in Northland. There are plenty of people up here how love FJK. They’re generally older, wealthier and comfortable. They characterise the poor and Maori as undeserving, lazy and criminal.
I’m surrounded by them.
“They’re generally older, wealthier and comfortable” bloody baby boomer’s who had the best of this country and there holding x and y to ransom fjk brighter future was never for x and y
Focussing on the wrong thing, Nats or JK are not that popular, it just that labour are deeply unpopular, Nats seen as the by far the better of two average options
So what do you think about the law change? Knock yourself out, let us know what you think.
Thanks for the invitation Micky 😀 i assume you agree with my first point but here you go
Pretty much agree with tone of blog, retrospective legislation is not just, Saying that labour has been known to use this tactic on a few occasions, electoral financing if my memorary serves me right, was not the foreshore and seabird issue of a similar ilk. Saying that two wrongs don’t make a right, national should be the party that respects property and contract rights, The left are far more comfortable in tramping over these rights.
This government are a bunch of constitutional morons.
Or they know exactly what they are doing and don’t care.
Only Findlayson could claim that.
The rest by their consistent actions of rolling over BORA tests, Crown Law advice, and reasonable time for the Parliamentary Counsel’s Office to do their job, are indeed Constitutional Morons.
But they are our morons who are less unpopular than the morons on the other side, hence jk is your prime minister and national is your government, and i suggest this will be so be for at least another 2 terms
The traitor Key is not my government – he disenfranchised me – he’s a crook and a tyrant and he must go.
No, They are not morons. They are white collar terrorists. They know exactly what they are doing, and the mission is to cut the balls off democracy.
Where was the flood of outrage when an even more despicable retraction of government promises was imposed retrospectively on the sadly cheated ratepayers of Kaipara?
This is SOP for National.
Kaipara was shocking too. The government and council are making the rules to suit themselves and public are powerless within the decision making process are then powerless when the poor effects from the government or their officials poor decisions are inflicted on them and they have to reap the consequences.
What happened in Kaipara?
The Mangawhai Ratepayers and Residents Association chairman has at least 500 local residents refusing to pay an estimated $1 million in rates this year because the Kaipara District Council secretly ran up an unsustainable $58 million debt building a sewage treatment scheme for about 2000 people who own homes here. The scheme has virtually bankrupted the council, which was forced to resign three months ago.
But many locals still face rates increases this year of about 40 per cent. Rates have more than doubled for some and several residents told the Weekend Heraldthey would sell if they could.
John Brown, who lives one street back from Rogan, is reeling from a 38 per cent increase in his rates bill to $3052. His five kids, now aged 13 to 25, have grown up at their Mangawhai bach over the past 24 years and Brown loves the place but he’s almost had enough.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10844763
Crikey, that’s a bloody mess and a half.
Joel Cayford has a good history of the issue on his blog – Reflections on Auckland Planning. As he has a property in Mangawhai he has been involved in the dispute since the beginning.
A primary issue is that the Kaipara Council did NOT following council procedures when committing to this spend. And the project did not meet the council criteria for such a commitment, and the decision was made in close sessions if IRC.
Oh, the poor fellow has a rates bill on what’s presumably his second home that’s not an awful lot more than that of an average dwelling in Whanganui.
//
@Joe90 – You’re missing the point. Whether you are a beneficiary, a prisoner on Christmas Island or someone who owns a bach, the law should be the law, and processes should be followed.
It shouldn’t be about judging who ever is effected and make it about the victims being deserving enough to have proper laws and processes given to them. Under law everyone should be treated the same in regards to what rights are afforded to them.
Whether it is about the government underpaying beneficiaries, or the Kaipara ouncil in closed sessions running up 58 million dollars of debt (which also sailed by the auditing bodies with zero red flags). Likewise on Christmas Island it is not about what the victim did or did not do, it is about what the Australian government is doing, what Serco is doing and what our government is doing about it.
By all means neck auditors and councillors who deceive rate payers but really, would Mr Brown be reeling had the expected boom eventuated and he and other land owners pocketed large tax free gains.
Spilt milk and all that…
Bit harsh joe90. It’s always a problem for little settlements to upgrade water and sewerage from the old simple systems of rainwater off the roof into a tank and septic tanks for sewerage.
The job was too much for a small Council that I bet wanted to give the impression it knew what it was doing. It is the fault of Labour? I may be corrected here. in changing to general competency for Council’s spending. There should be a line drawn in the sand for Councils, with an overview from central govt and a local referendum explaining. This would stop Councils from building infrastructure more expensive in design than is appropriate because some pushy well connected people had big ideas. It would also limit huge dams of dubious cost effectiveness, and definite environmentally detrimental impact.
In Nelson we are getting the same architects to design a new airport terminal as designed Wellington’s leaning into the wind one. I hope they concentrate on the basics and don’t add unnecessary fancy touches that will have to be paid for by the airlines/passengers. Our present has to be changed for earthquake strengthening reasons.
A bit harsh, yup, but TBH my piss and vinegar levels are running pretty damn high.
Whanganui is close to $100 million in the hole because of an ongoing waste water treatment saga that goes back more than a decade – from mates looking after mates to design fuckups to stenches to more fuckups to delays to cost over runs to stenches with no end in sight. The ongoing rates burden on a small low wage low property value community with a high level of fixed incomes is huge and slowly strangling us.
Yet even though I’m forced to contribute to the damn saga through an ever increasing general levy I have absolutely no chance of ever ditching my own on site treatment system and connecting to the city waste water scheme.
That’s a bit fucking harsh too I reckon.
Joe90
Sounds like a never ending saga. Awful. These problems should result for small communities in being able to draw on expertise from a university with a specialist dept handling this problem. Sounds like the wheel has to be invented independently by each community. A vicious circle. I guess you would be more resigned about paying if only the stench could be banished.
Some of us live here Joe. It’s not just a wee town of holiday homes for rich Aucklanders, although there are a lot of them.
Some of us live here all year round.
Lara
I don’t think Joe90 is thinking that it easier for you who live there all the time.
But someone who has a bach as an extra house might regard it as disposable and not complain so hard if there was a big rise in value, and a nice profit.
Unlike yourself, stuck with a rising bill for rates that sounds as if it will be high for some years. Even higher property valuations would be of little ‘value’ to a permanent home owner lumped with rocketing rates.
and guess who is part of it – albeit ‘reluctantly’ our promint NZ ‘er from Northland who caused a byelection and can’t be named.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11167160
http://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/local-news/rodney-times/9494525/Kaipara-rates-bill-passed
Last week the High Court ruled that the council acted illegally, both in starting the scheme in 2005 and increasing its cost by about $22 million the following year without telling ratepayers.
Justice Paul Heath said the council’s debts to banks which lent the money must be repaid and the court had no power to overturn a law passed in November last year which validated the council’s incorrectly set rates.
But he urged the commissioners to consider alternatives to steep rate increases to pay down the debt, including renegotiating the loans and taking legal action against those responsible.
Justice Heath referred to Auditor-General Lyn Provost’s report on the Mangawhai scheme last November, in which she apologised unreservedly for the auditing failures, and to the Local Government select committee’s report, which urged accountability for any parties found to be at fault.
Northland MP Mike Sabin – who has campaigned for the Office of the Auditor-General to pay the increased cost of the scheme instead of ratepayers – said the Auditor-General’s long delay in investigating the problem had pushed key events out of legal reach.
He said Mangawhai property owners had alerted the Auditor-General to the problem in 2009 yet it took three years to start an inquiry in late 2012. The inquiry, which was supposed to take six months, dragged on for 20 months and the final report was made public on December 3, days after the expiry of the statute of limitations for the council’s November 2007 decision.
———————————————————————————————————–
so it really has got nothing to do with ‘increasing values of the properties’ n such, it has all to do with people overstepping their powers, racking up debt and then expecting others to pay them, in this case the rate payers and the tax payer.
oh well…..
@Madtom
What happened after that to Kaipara… Did they call in government cronies to run the council and what happened to the rate payers … it has all gone quiet on the media front?
AFAIK there are still government appointed commissioners in charge up here.
We have not had local body elections for years.
Those who were in power when the debt was racked up have never been bought to justice. They resigned I believe. The whole thing was swept under the carpet.
They broke the law, but because they did it to the tune of millions of dollars (not for their own benefit but still, it was done illegally) they get off.
At least, that’s the outcome.
See if you run up debt as a government or council official you are not charged with misuse. If you were an employee such as a money trader and go awol and run up massive company liabilities for shares, guess what they prosecute you under the law.
Big double standard for workers against government.
In my view those in government or council office should be asked to have a higher standard – they have a lot more resources afforded to them and more innocent people are effected by their bad decisions.
i would like to know how Winz calculated the amounts that beneficiaries have to re-fund, whenever WINZ is of the opinion that they mis-calculated the benefit.
The day from the stand down period, or the day after that. 🙂
Lovers of the Key govt will simply claim that ‘those deadbeat dopey unemployed don’t deserve any better’. So hit them harder. Wonder how many of their children have been unemployed at some time. Bet there would be plenty who have been affected by this.
Annette King made an outstanding speech too. It was so good I thought it might actually have an effect on Tolley, but she had left the chamber. It put everything in perspective. Can’t link to it ,sorry.
Was Slater in line for a bak payment?
Joking aside did the total payment affect Bill’s surplus?
MS I’m pleased Labour fought the bill but they still deserved all the stick they got in your previous post. And they will continue to get it until it becomes clear (via consistent advocacy and fighting for beneficiary rights, both in the House and in policy) that they do truely give a damn and aren’t just using us for political point scoring when it suits them.
ihc workers were striped of there back pay retrospectively as well by this fucken government
Politicians can do almost nothing that serves to undermine democracy and the rule of law than to pass retrospective legislation.
Even sending in the tanks and killing protestors is, in the big picture, less harmful to the fabric of society than what this government is now doing on a regular basis.
In the trials that followed WW II the morality of the proceedings was dictated by who had won. A very courageous woman philosopher, Hannah Arendt, a Jewess who had herself had to escape the pogroms tried to point out, in reporting on the trial of Adolf Eichmann, that inventing a crime that did not exist in order to be able to send Eichmann to the gallows, put the so-called western democracies on the same page as the National Socialists.
Canada and UK have judiciaries that are much more courageous and independent than ours, which is a pusillanimous gaggle of brown-noses sucking up to power, and those countries are having serious discussion about assaults on the rule of law. High on the agenda is the repugnancy of retrospective legislation.
Retrospective legislation is the ultimate counsel of despair. It is the device of the caliphate, of the totalitarian, of the bully, of the bigot, of the terrorist who has come to power. It is synonymous with Zimbabwe, Myanmar, former South Africa, Republican America, modern Russia, and now, New Zealand. One thing that must be said for Key, once it was determined that we were in a race for the bottom, he was the perfect choice for leader.e
Well said!
Being a simple cheater or liar is not usually considered a desirable feature in a political leader.
But changing the clear, printed black-and-white rules after the game has been played, and redistributing the winnings and losses so your friends take all and the trusting fools who relied on laws, promises and rules lose all – that is light-years beyond simply being a cheater or liar.
Such are the people now in power in our country.
It was such a lovely country. How did this happen?