When You Pay Peanuts, You Get Propaganda

Written By: - Date published: 6:23 pm, June 17th, 2023 - 38 comments
Categories: journalism, making shit up, Media, news, Propaganda - Tags: ,

The story of wire stories having been altered for the last five years on the RNZ website undetected is mindboggling. However, I don’t think this is an isolated case and more of these kinds of ‘mistakes’ will surface in other websites of NZ news media.

One of the causes is chronic underfunding over many years, as put forward by Newsroom co-editor Mark Jennings, for example. The sector has been under immense commercial pressure, more so after the Covid-19 pandemic, and coupled with ridiculously tight deadlines this inevitably leads to BS and propaganda, for example, getting through the expected critical filters & safety checks and published in great haste. This is a point also made by Dr Joan Donovan, a US-based researcher of media manipulation, disinformation and online extremism.

Predictions are that when the internet is flooded with AI-generated content, this will only make matters worse for new bureaus across the world.

I can personally attest how time-consuming and labour-intensive it is to author Posts and keep an eye on all comments on this blog site whilst trying to maintain a form of quality control. Authors & Mods do rely on the collective knowledge, attention, and wisdom of the commentariat to keep things running smoothly here and keep the truthfulness levels as high as possible. This is not fail-safe by any means!

For public debate and civil conversations, we all rely on trustworthy sources of news & information and the problems that surfaced at RNZ go to the heart of the matter. If we, individually, lose trust in those sources, for whatever reason, and we can no longer mutually agree on those sources as a foundation for robust yet respectful debate, then we find ourselves in a truly dark & dystopian world.

In some ways, trust is a chain, of dominoes, and it is as strong & reliable (and durable & resilient) as it weakest link or the most wobbly domino. This is even more true in politics where even the most innocent ‘gotcha’ moment or the slightest and most trivial alleged misdemeanour or ‘technicality’ can be instantly weaponised and blown up to become a nuclear weapon of mass political destruction. Further erosion & undermining of trust, in media or authorities, et cetera, is merely collateral damage and sometimes even a welcome bonus, depending on who the aggressor is.

Charlie Mitchell over at Stuff has done a nice analysis (https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/300906113/this-rnz-story-is-probably-more-complicated-than-first-thought) of some of the alterations that were made to the wire stories on the RNZ website. Interestingly, many were quite subtle & nuanced and a speed-reader such as me (with a mild dose of dyslexia) would simply miss them even when having the two versions side-by-side on one computer screen.

Other changes were more major & significant, but none would clearly qualify as something coming straight from a ‘radicalised’ individual’s megaphone or something that you would read on absurd NZ blog sites run by small egos with extreme opinions and combative attitudes (mostly aimed at people rather than topics). However, they all had a common that they changed the “tone or framing” of the story and “always in the same ideological direction”. However, Mitchell opines that the changes/alterations may not necessarily neatly fall under the disinformation umbrella.

We live in interesting times.

38 comments on “When You Pay Peanuts, You Get Propaganda ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. adam 1
    18 June 2023 at 2:45 am

    Don't you think a little historical context around you post might have helped? A change in the ownership of the media for example? Or in RNZ case, the change of structure under the last Key government? Or the fact this has blown up in the middle of war, which has been from the outset been an exercise in heavy propaganda from all sides?

    But lets leave that aside, politics it's not about a polite debate, it's not a fair world. The right will buy this election. They will do it by lying, cheating, and by any means they think they will win. Dirty politics is very real, and to think being nice and polite is the answer, is to gift the radical far right, right into government.

    Finally, and yes I'm going to get personal, why no courage to name said blog site?

  2. pat 2
    18 June 2023 at 3:26 am

    Id venture to suggest that salaries/funding at public broadcasters has always been at the legume level….perhaps the cause of the current problems at RNZ lie elsewhere.

    • Incognito 2.1
      18 June 2023 at 8:30 pm

      Indeed, as mentioned in the OP, this is likely an issue wider than RNZ.

      In the episode of Newshub Nation (linked in the OP), Newshub Nation Digital Editor Finn Hogan did mention three things (among others): 1) digital journalists are often not coming from a traditional broadcast background; 2) digital journalists are often paid a lot less money than traditional broadcast; 3) any learning that comes out of the RNZ situation is that newsrooms really need to invest and pay attention to their digital arms.

  3. kejo 3
    18 June 2023 at 9:08 am

    Broadcasting suffers from the exact same problem as every other government department and beuracratic endeavour. Chronic underfunding and every little detail contracted out to a large corporate with the profits exported.

  4. tWiggle 4
    18 June 2023 at 9:54 am

    Going back to deliberate disinformation and realworld results, just watched a webinar from an EU-funded project to counter disinfo. It talks about scoring the real-life influence of seeded disinformation.

    The easy-watch place to start in this webinar is from 17 min, when Ben Nimmo gives real-life examples. Chilling.

    To add to the discussion, who benefits? How Musk twitter monetises disinformation puts $ figures on why Musk has loosened the controls on twitter.

    And to see debunking of disinfo in action:

    twitter post shows schlocky image doctored by 4-chan, alongside the original image. Further down in the thread, someone links the source video from which the blameless person was pulled.

  5. higherstandard 5
    18 June 2023 at 10:08 am

    When you pay shit loads you also get propaganda…as it's tax payer funds I'd prefer we stick to the peanuts.

    • Incognito 5.1
      18 June 2023 at 8:32 pm

      You gave your opinion but no reasoning or arguments.

      Other newsrooms are likely to have or face similar issues. This has got nothing to do with tax payer funds.

      The compelling argument is that newsrooms need to invest more time & money and pay more attention to their digital arms, not less.

  6. Patricia Bremner 6
    18 June 2023 at 11:57 am

    Personally I believe, like the Judiciary, payment should be at a level that there is little temptation. I also believe The Press Council should be funded and audited and be more proactive. To me, paywalls create divisions. those who pay for information and those who can't. Worse, now we have AI and Chat bots. Very difficult for the ordinary bod to pick truth from slightly slanted.

    • Dennis Frank 6.1
      18 June 2023 at 12:04 pm

      Worse, now we have AI and Chat bots

      Indeed the trend to watch Patricia! I'm expecting this to escalate considerably on the global stage the next few years. The reason is that cultural contagion is driven by network effects. Experts on that scene are opining that scaling up of collective leverage is where all the smart action is headed. At the media/politics interface, competitive social darwinist designs will become highly interactive I expect…

  7. Anne 7
    18 June 2023 at 12:01 pm

    Media Watch (RNZ) have an article which sums up the story well:

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/mediawatch/audio/2018894802/further-fallout-as-rnz-takes-out-the-garbage

    Excerpt: Peter Bale, editor of Wiki Tribune:

    I think there's been a little bit of ‘too florid’ language used about this. This person h’as inserted what are in some people's views genuine talking points from those who . . . want to have expressed what the Russian view is. But it was very ham-fisted,” said Bale.

    “There are ways to do this. You could have inserted the Russian perspective to highlight the fact that there is a different view about things like the Orange Revolution when the pro-Kremlin leader in Kyiv was overthrown,” he said.

    “I don't think it is necessarily ‘Kremlin propaganda’ as it's been described. It was just a misguided attempt to bring another perspective, I suspect, but it still represents a tremendous breach of trust,” he said.

    From what we have learned thus far, I think Bale has got it right.

    It looks to me like this Michael Hall failed to recognise the difference between social media forums such as TS where different opinions and perspectives are expressed – albeit within acceptable boundaries – and an online story sourced from an internationally renowned newsagent such as Reuters.

    He really was a stupid man to try it on.

    • Muttonbird 7.1
      18 June 2023 at 12:54 pm

      Part of the problem is accepting the line that Reuters is immune from politically slanted output, and more problematic is that Reuters is accepted as "internationally renowned" and as such the weight of their name is considered wholly trustworthy, neutral and free from political interference and bias.

      But, how do we know that is the case?

      In the Charlie Mitchell article, he says at the end:

      This is partly managed through bylines, which allow readers to judge the reporter’s work – their interests, style, biases – and to rely on that information when viewing their other work.

      Any dispute can be channelled towards an identifiable person.

      That is impossible when changes based on political ideology are made by a hidden hand and inserted into material written by other journalists without their knowledge.

      Fine, but wire copy reproduced on RNZ doesn't always include a byline (sometimes only the name of the news agency at the end), and so there is no identifiable person. Even when there is a byline, NZ readers would not necessarily know the background or political slant of the writer.

      In the above article, only one of the reproduced articles has a byline, the last one by Guy Falconbridge. It is the article when drew the complaint because Michael Hall added:

      The conflict in Ukraine began in 2014 after a pro-Russian elected government was toppled during Ukraine’s violent Maidan colour revolution. Russia annexed Crimea after a referendum, as the new pro-Western government suppressed ethnic Russians in eastern and southern Ukraine, sending in its armed forces to the Donbas.

      Can't see what is controversial about this paragraph because it is stone cold fact. Agree though that the RNZ copy should state that the article had been edited.

      The whole thing highlights a problem at the heart of Charlie Mitchell's point, that sometimes in editorials, and in reproduced copy, there is no identification of the writer.

      • Anne 7.1.1
        18 June 2023 at 1:56 pm

        "Part of the problem is accepting the line that Reuters is immune from politically slanted output…"

        Agreed. But in the excerpt I linked to, Peter Bale does explain how this person should have gone about it.

        My use of the word "stupid" to describe Michael Hall's behaviour was not quite right. "Naivety" would have been a better description. If that is correct I feel a bit sorry for him. We've all done naive things in our lives.

      • UncookedSelachimorpha 7.1.2
        18 June 2023 at 2:58 pm

        Can't see what is controversial about this paragraph because it is stone cold fact

        Actually, it is stone cold kremlin propaganda – but I guess you are evidence that it is effective. Have you read many Ukrainian sources? One angle of kremlin propaganda is that Ukrainians have no agency or valid opinion on their own country and experience.

        The conflict in Ukraine began in 2014 after a pro-Russian elected government *1 was toppled during Ukraine’s violent *2 Maidan colour revolution. Russia annexed Crimea after a referendum *3, as the new pro-Western government suppressed ethnic Russians *4 in eastern and southern Ukraine, sending in its armed forces to the Donbas *5.

        *1 whose leader is suspected of stealing billions of state money and now lives in russia under the protection of the russian government

        *2 most of the violence was from police snipers shooting unarmed anti-government protestors. At least some of these snipers are suspected of being russian troops / police. Vast majority of the killed and wounded were protestors, not police / government.

        *3 an illegal referendum conducted at gunpoint, under russian military occupation, widely regarded as illegitimate.

        *4 little or no evidence of any abuse of ethnic russians in Ukraine, but often repeated by russia. Russia famously russifies everywhere it occupies (including deportation / murder of much of the native Crimean population, extermination of local languages). Russian is widely spoken throughout Ukraine (and is the first language of the president).

        *5 Sent to donbas following attacks from regular russian military and russian-backed militia.

      • Incognito 7.1.3
        18 June 2023 at 8:36 pm

        Your argument is flawed. Michael Hall made changes to the stories that changed the tone or framing and he instilled his own ideological bias & views. The least he should have done is to put his name under those altered stories and clearly indicate what was original text and what was his own commentary & opinion. This is the exact same principle we adhere to here on TS for comments.

        Frankly, I’m gobsmacked that you don’t seem to have a problem with those hidden edits.

        • Muttonbird 7.1.3.1
          19 June 2023 at 10:05 am

          I love the edits, every self-respecting leftie should. Agree readers should have been made aware the articles had been edited, and have said so at @ 7.1

          This should be the case whenever anything published has been changed by anyone other than the writer.

    • Incognito 7.2
      18 June 2023 at 8:35 pm

      Yes, I agree with Peter Bale and you.

      FYI, the title of the OP was deliberately provocative. The alterations made to the wire stories may have aligned with Russian propaganda, but this doesn’t mean or even imply that Russia was involved and that it truly qualifies as propaganda as such.

  8. Phillip ure 8
    18 June 2023 at 12:03 pm

    I think this creative editing exercise @ rnz…has actually underlined the credibility of rnz as a reliable source for news..

    And their increased internal vigilance after this brouhaha. .will only further enhance that credibility..

  9. Mike the Lefty 9
    18 June 2023 at 12:07 pm

    It is dangerous to get me started about journalistic standards because I have a big problem with how journalists are trained nowadays.

    I trained as a journalist in the late 1970s. This was at Wellington Polytechnic, which has since become a part of Massey University.

    There were a few fundamental principles we were taught.

    The most important was credibility and trust. This was earned by demonstrating accuracy in reporting, fairness, political neutrality and protecting your source's confidentiality when writing about sensitive subjects.

    But now the industry turns out journalists the way IT wants them. Smart arses who are looking to make a name for themselves, towing the political line (usually right wing) that employers want and writing material that is style over substance.

    What interests me in the RNZ case is that the journalist responsible reportedly thought he/she had done nothing wrong. This is probably true, they were doing things how they were taught to do, change a bit here and there to make a more interesting story – nothing wrong with that is there?

    I think it says more about the poisonous media mogul-controlled industry than it does about the individual journalist at the centre of attention. He/she will be hung out to dry but there are a whole more at the top that deserve that too.

    • Anne 9.1
      18 June 2023 at 12:27 pm

      Couldn't agree more Mike the Lefty.

      The deliberate falsehoods and the denigrating of Labour and Green politicians are daily occurrences in certain media outlets (we all know the worst example), yet they are free to spread their particular brand of poisoning without consequences.

      • Mike the Lefty 9.1.1
        18 June 2023 at 12:46 pm

        Something I forgot to add.

        We were taught that the most important thing was what the people we talked to said, and what they thought. What we as journalists thought wasn't important. Many a time I had to stifle my natural left wing tendencies when reporting on something or a political party that I did not agree with but that was the nature of the job. I was just the medium from the source to the publication and I think I did it pretty well.

        When you have gained journalistic credibility you can start to do opinion pieces, but it takes a long time. There are a lot of stuff and ZB Newstalk writers who probably think they have gained journalistic credibility but their credibility is low by my standards.

        Nowadays journalists seem to be encouraged to take a political line. In my day you gained journalistic credibility by refusing to take sides and not taking any shit from politicians trying to use you as their mouthpiece. You can't say the same today.

    • Patricia Bremner 9.2
      18 June 2023 at 12:47 pm

      Yes influencers rather than reporters.yes 100% Mike the Lefty.

    • mikesh 9.3
      18 June 2023 at 4:42 pm

      Is Paul Thompson a trained journalist, or is he a managerial person ?

  10. Drowsy M. Kram 10
    18 June 2023 at 3:24 pm

    higherstandard @5 is concerned about media propaganda, but there's also 'And I would have gotten away with it too, if it weren't for you meddling journalists!' to consider.
    Keep 'em honest, as much as is possible in these $$$-mesmerised times.

    Mediawatch: Turning off the news? [9 April 2023]
    “We noticed that there's 14,500 journalists in Finland [popn 5.5 m] – and about 2500 here [popn 5.2 m]. It does actually speak to what you can offer people. I think in New Zealand we're rushing the news. I'm not blaming journalists for that, because that same stuff has to be covered with fewer resources, but you're inevitably going to get thinner coverage,” Dr Treadwell said.

    https://www.icij.org/journalists/nicky-hager/
    Gotta love a free press, even if it means putting up with a few "media drongos" smiley

    The top five investigations of 2020. So good that there are actually seven

    Why Victorian voters need to care about press freedom [3 Nov. 2022]
    Without meddling journalists, and brave whistleblowers, we may never have had a royal commission into the banking sector, an investigation into industrial-scale branch stacking in the ALP, or the Fitzgerald Inquiry which exposed political and police corruption and organised crime in Queensland.

    Journalism is a public good: World trends in freedom of expression and media development; Global report 2021/2022
    Conclusion
    The picture outlined in this World Trends Report is a sobering one. Even as the global community has seen mounting evidence for the importance of a free, independent, pluralistic, and sustainable news media where the safety of journalists is secured, this public good is threatened on all fronts. There is, however, also some cause for optimism. While accounting for this grim tally of setbacks, this Report highlights a groundswell of efforts to preserve press freedom and protect the safety of journalists around the world.

    https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/share-people-trust-journalists-country

    https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20230426IPR82701/the-daphne-caruana-galizia-prize-for-journalism-call-for-submission-of-entries

  11. Steve Bradley 11
    18 June 2023 at 4:55 pm

    RNZ News Sunday 17th of June at 0700hr.

    The new wisdom is that listeners to RNZ News are losing confidence in the supposed even-handed, fairness, and neutrality of RNZ news. This wisdom is being declared in response to the discovery that news editorial staff have been re-writing foreign-sourced news of the conflict in Ukraine in ways that are favourable to the Russian point of view. The Minister of Broadcasting has launched an investigation by appointing three persons to assess the evidence.

    But ever since since the long-standing conflict in Ukraine was elevated by the Russian Special Military Operation, the Western media has churned out endless stories favourable to the position taken by the US State Department.

    Classic example: just to make sure that no one can be confused about what is going on in Ukraine – the background message on TVNZ News every night since the beginning has always read in large characters: Russia Invades Ukraine. Don't ever forget.

    Current example: RNZ News at 0700 on Sunday June 18th.

    Paraphrasing: President Putin welcomed a delegation of African leader to a meeting in St. Petersburg. African leaders appealed for a negotiated end to the Ukraine conflict. President Putin smiled broadly as he welcomed South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. The South African President called for negotiations to end the war. No coverage of what Putin said.

    But not to worry, we are provided with an audio bite from somebody called Michael O'Hanlon of the Brookings Institute in Washington, D.C. who tells us that neither party knows how to start negotiations. And that we'll just have to wait and see how the current military [offensive/counter-offensive] works out.

    This ignores the well documented fact that negotiations between the two sides some time back under the aegis of the President of Turkey produced a package to take to the table for signing.

    That settlement, provisionally agreeable to the two principals to the conflict, was nixed by NATO.

    This morning's particular item was not repeated in the 0800 Bulletin! Go figure.

    • Incognito 11.1
      18 June 2023 at 8:38 pm

      The Minister of Broadcasting has launched an investigation by appointing three persons to assess the evidence.

      This is completely incorrect and highly misleading.

      RNZ chief executive Paul Thompson initiated an immediate investigation and has announced an external review of RNZ's processes for the editing of online stories to ensure these are robust. The terms of reference for that review were announced on June 14.

      https://www.rnz.co.nz/programmes/news-extras/story/2018893905/rnz-editorial-audit

      This morning's particular item was not repeated in the 0800 Bulletin! Go figure.

      Firstly, there is no ‘0800 Bulletin’. Secondly, the news cycles are short and not repeating a story on radio is not at all the same as altering online content.

      I also have doubts about your ‘recollection’ of negotiations between Ukraine and Russia but you can take that to OM, if you wish to discuss that further – not under my Post, thanks.

      • Anne 11.1.1
        18 June 2023 at 9:58 pm

        So Steve Bradley is doing exactly what the online digital editor has been accused of doing. Altering the facts to suit his perception of what they should be?

  12. tsmithfield 12
    19 June 2023 at 6:21 am

    I am just joining this conversation. And, I agree with the problem as set out. And, AI will certainly make things a lot worse. I think, in the future, it will become increasingly difficult to discern what is true, and what is fake.

    But, I think, first principles are that people creating media need to be creating content that people want to view. Personally, I think traditional TV is dead. In our home we seldom watch broadcast TV these days. We watch the news, and that is about it. Other than that we watch streamed content. I listen to the radio on the way into work. Other than that, everything I get is online now. And, I don't think my family is alone in this trend, judging by the stated rationale for merging RNZ/TVNZ.

    So, media needs to adapt to the new environment in the first instance. It might be that NZ simply isn't big enough for a government-owned entity such as RNZ, and that such entities will end up just becoming black holes for tax payer money. This is a concern when there are competing demands from areas such as health that most voters would likely see as much more important.

    So, increasingly, I think the viability of state-owned media will come under the spotlight. And media will be left to sink or swim on the basis of its merits.

  13. Thinker 13
    19 June 2023 at 7:36 am

    Sorry, this was a comment to the dumber article. The train went over a bump maybe. P

  14. Adrian Thornton 14
    19 June 2023 at 9:11 am

    Thanks for having the RNZ logo up there next to the title Propaganda…when it comes to geopolitics RNZ pretty much does nothing but regurgitate western propaganda….and just look at their outrageous bias when it comes to covering Trump vs Biden…it is jaw dropping, well actually it isn't any more because they have been doing it so long now that their bias is just normalized..and consumed mindlessly by most of their lazy politically lobotomized Liberal audience.

    Kim Hill and NZ have never offered an apologized to it's listeners for pushing the totally debunked Trump/Russia conspiracy for years on end..and never will….talk about propaganda.

    • Incognito 14.1
      20 June 2023 at 9:26 am

      Of course, you completely missed the point of the Post and its provocative title. Or you were just looking for an excuse to lash out and attack your usual targets because you cannot stand them or rather their views & narratives.

  15. Karl Sinclair 15
    19 June 2023 at 10:36 am

    Adrian Thornton, I agree that “when it comes to geopolitics RNZ pretty much does nothing but regurgitate western propaganda”

    Having been an avid listener to RNZ I use to think it was balanced, objective and fair in it’s reporting. However, if you take the time to contrast RNZs narrative with independent analysis you very much become distrustful of our own legacy media. I suspect that’s why the disinformation project has been activated.. to ensure the proletariat stay on track.

    The below links discussing the Ukraine War will give you an example of how neutered RNZ is. Unfortunately, I think it has become a mouth piece for the US Democratic Party (aka NEOCONS) and/Republicans.

    As for Peanuts check out RNZs previous CEO salary range

    Cavanagh had been RNZ chief executive for 10 years. In RNZ's annual report for 2011/2012 his remuneration was in the $340,000-$350,000 range. I wonder what Radio NZ has head-hunted Fairfax Media editorial boss Paul Thompson gets currently (not peanuts…. maybe gold McNuggets?)

    https://i.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/8795664/RNZ-names-Fairfax-boss-as-new-CEO

    Examples contrasting RNZ coverage of Ukrainian War

    Rus Claims Massive Ukr Losses Failed Offensive; Putin Shows Africa Leaders Draft Treaty US/UK Vetoed

    Rus Claims Massive Ukr Losses Failed Offensive; Putin Shows Africa Leaders Draft Treaty US/UK Vetoed

    Overnight, the Western Press Radically Rewrote the Truth About Ukraine to Serve Biden's Endless War Policies | SYSTEM UPDATE #92

    Security guarantees w/ Jeffrey Sachs (Live)

    https://www.youtube.com/live/tm1bIzxkpm0?feature=share

  16. Tiger Mountain 16
    19 June 2023 at 10:46 am

    Well, Radio New Zealand was under attack from the Natzos for years with frozen funding. When John Campbell was briefly there it looked like they operated from a beligured bunker with fold out desks if you watched the video.

    Yet, the top echelon was full of Torys and fifth columnists, as were a number of their alumni over the years–closet nats that came out–Sean Plunket, Mike Hosking, Maggie Barry, and it has to be said that Kathryn Ryan and Guyon Espiner are prime suspects in that regard also.

    Intelligent, ethical Subediting is a bygone thing, farmed out to online contractors or sidelined. But hey, I have no complaints with an individual straightening up some of Reuters shit flow.

    • Karl Sinclair 16.1
      19 June 2023 at 10:52 am

      Tiger Mountain… you said

      “But hey, I have no complaints with an individual straightening up some of Reuters shit flow.”

      So eloquently said…. couldn’t agree more.

      Maybe you could get a gig at RNZ 😬

      [Please correct your username in your next comment, thanks – Incognito]

  17. Jono letts 17
    23 June 2023 at 11:17 pm

    GEE..how naughty of an editor to change a pro-Washington slanted bias article masquerading as journalism. By printing the reverse narrative…simply proves how difficult it is to find any objective print.

    • Incognito 17.1
      24 June 2023 at 5:04 pm

      Please go back to school and don’t comment again under my Posts until you can figure out that secretly altering or manipulating text, including adding false facts, does not constitute ‘objective print’.

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    Amsterdam to Hong Kong William McCartney16,000 kilometres41 days18 trains13 countries11 currencies6 long-distance taxis4 taxi apps4 buses3 sim cards2 ferries1 tram0 medical events (surprisingly)Episode 4Whether the Sofia-Istanbul Express really qualifies to be called an express is debatable, but it’s another one of those likeably old and slow trains tha… ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago

  • The Hoon around the week to Dec 8
    Governor-General Dame Cindy Kiro arrives for the State Opening of Parliament (Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images)TL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:New Finance Minister Nicola Willis set herself a ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago

  • New Zealand’s Witchcraft Laws: 1840/1858-1961/1962
    Sometimes one gets morbidly curious about the oddities of one’s own legal system. Sometimes one writes entire essays on New Zealand’s experience with Blasphemous Libel: https://phuulishfellow.wordpress.com/2017/05/09/blasphemous-libel-new-zealand-politics/ And sometimes one follows up the exact historical status of witchcraft law in New Zealand. As one does, of course. ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    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 ...
    Skeptical Science
    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 ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    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. ...
    Skeptical Science
    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 ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    3 days ago

  • Rising costs hit farmers hard, but  there’s more  positive news  for  them this  week 
    New Zealand’s dairy industry, the mainstay of the country’s export trade, has  been under  pressure  from rising  costs. Down on the  farm, this  has  been  hitting  hard. But there  was more positive news this week,  first   from the latest Fonterra GDT auction where  prices  rose,  and  then from  a  report ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    3 days ago

  • ROB MacCULLOCH:  Newshub and NZ Herald report misleading garbage about ACT’s van Veldon not follo...
    Rob MacCulloch writes –  In their rush to discredit the new government (which our MainStream Media regard as illegitimate and having no right to enact the democratic will of voters) the NZ Herald and Newshub are arguing ACT’s Deputy Leader Brooke van Veldon is not following Treasury advice ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    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 ...
    Skeptical Science
    4 days ago

  • New Zealaders  have  high expectations of  new  government:  now let’s see if it can deliver?
    The electorate has high expectations of the  new  government.  The question is: can  it  deliver?    Some  might  say  the  signs are not  promising. Protestors   are  already marching in the streets. The  new  Prime Minister has had  little experience of managing  very diverse politicians  in coalition. The economy he  ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    4 days ago

  • You won't believe some of the numbers you have to pull when you're a Finance Minister
    Nicola of Marsden:Yo, normies! We will fix your cost of living worries by giving you a tax cut of 150 dollars. 150! Cash money! Vote National.Various people who can read and count:Actually that's 150 over a fortnight. Not a week, which is how you usually express these things.And actually, it looks ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago

  • Pushback
    When this government came to power, it did so on an explicitly white supremacist platform. Undermining the Waitangi Tribunal, removing Māori representation in local government, over-riding the courts which had tried to make their foreshore and seabed legislation work, eradicating te reo from public life, and ultimately trying to repudiate ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago

  • Defence ministerial meeting meant Collins missed the Maori Party’s mischief-making capers in Parli...
    Buzz from the Beehive Maybe this is not the best time for our Minister of Defence to have gone overseas. Not when the Maori Party is inviting (or should that be inciting?) its followers to join a revolution in a post which promoted its protest plans with a picture of ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago

  • Threats of war have been followed by an invitation to join the revolution – now let’s see how th...
     A Maori Party post on Instagram invited party followers to ….  Tangata Whenua, Tangata Tiriti, Join the REVOLUTION! & make a stand!  Nationwide Action Day, All details in tiles swipe to see locations.  • This is our 1st hit out and tomorrow Tuesday the 5th is the opening ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • Top 10 for Tuesday, December 4
    The RBNZ governor is citing high net migration and profit-led inflation as factors in the bank’s hawkish stance. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s my pick of the top 10 news and analysis links elsewhere on the morning of Tuesday, December 5, including:Reserve Bank Governor Adrian Orr says high net migration and ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    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 ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    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 ...
    Skeptical Science
    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 ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    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 ...
    Bowalley Road
    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 ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    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 ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    6 days ago

  • Chris Bishop: Smokin’
    Yes. Correct. It was an election result. And now we are the elected government. ...
    My ThinksBy boonman
    6 days ago

  • 2023 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #48
    A chronological listing of news and opinion articles posted on the Skeptical Science  Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Nov 26, 2023 thru Dec 2, 2023. Story of the Week CO2 readings from Mauna Loa show failure to combat climate change Daily atmospheric carbon dioxide data from Hawaiian volcano more ...
    Skeptical Science
    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 ...
    Skeptical Science
    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
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