Where in the world is Wong?

Written By: - Date published: 7:13 am, November 24th, 2010 - 61 comments
Categories: accountability, corruption, election funding - Tags: ,

Two Friday’s ago, corrupt Nat Pansy Wong resigns as minister. Key tells her not to talk to media. As if she can’t remember her own overseas trips. Gives her a week’s leave. Wong disappears. Week’s up – no Wong. Where is she? Mallard’s heard she’s overseas. Fundraising for the Nats. Is she using her travel perk?

61 comments on “Where in the world is Wong? ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. smhead 1
    24 November 2010 at 7:23 am

    Yawn. Mallard’s a lying scumbag. He has heard nothing of the sort.

  2. ghostwhowalksnz 2
    24 November 2010 at 7:26 am

    Where’s Waldo ?
    http://www.findwaldo.com/

  3. Pascal's bookie 3
    24 November 2010 at 7:35 am

    I’m pretty comforatble with the idea that people the state suspects of committing a crime should be under no obligation to incriminate themselves, but this new scheme of Key’s where politicians shouldn’t have to front up to questions from the media until it’s been worked out how much anyone else knows is just bullshit.

    • Ari 3.1
      24 November 2010 at 7:38 am

      Talking to the media is not the same thing as incriminating yourself, and you can always not comment if you’re in a tricky spot.

      An MP that hides from the media is doing their job wrong, assuming they’re even doing it.

      • Pascal's bookie 3.1.1
        24 November 2010 at 7:56 am

        Yeah, what gets me is how meek and mild the media are being about it.

        Key is pretty much saying that if the media were allowed to ask her questions, she might contradict what happens to be the truth, and it would be unfair to put her in such a position!!

        • The Voice of Reason 3.1.1.1
          24 November 2010 at 8:10 am

          Perhaps there should be a people’s picket outside the Herald and TVNZ with signs saying what stories we would like covered each day. Because if we don’t tell them what real news is, they’ll never work it out for themselves.

          If anybody is thinking of running with this idea and want to target TV3, a word of caution; write your signs in crayon so Duncan Garner can get the message as well.

    • g says 3.3
      24 November 2010 at 9:29 am

      I’m pretty comforatble with the idea that people the state suspects of committing a crime should be under no obligation to incriminate themselves.

      ironically mr power wants to remove that right from the statutes.
      perhaps we need more urgency to get this erosion of liberty enshrined quickly.
      is parliament one of the gangs that this legislation targets?

    • insider 3.4
      24 November 2010 at 11:12 am

      Even worse to me is JK said that he had no responsibility for WOng once he had sacked her from cabinet. Now he saying he has instructed her not to speak, implying she is responsible for her actions to him….

      • Jim Nald 3.4.1
        24 November 2010 at 11:34 am

        The man is a scamming genius with his modus operandi, like his blind trust?

        Set things up so to say you have distance but they are actually still right under your nose.

  4. kriswgtn 4
    24 November 2010 at 7:44 am

    Wong gone to Hong Kong

    Sorry couldnt resist that 😛

  5. felix 5
    24 November 2010 at 8:30 am

    As Pb said, the media response is dodgy as. This is how it looks:

    Key says to Wong “don’t talk to the media”

    Media interpret this as “don’t ask Wong anything” and fall into line.

    Hey journos. Remember the old days when you used to chase people down stairwells and camp up outside their houses to get them to front?

    WHA HAAPENED!??

    • Tigger 5.1
      24 November 2010 at 8:52 am

      And Carter thought he was being singled out…whatever gave him the impression that he was being hounded differently from the others…I mean, clearly his treatment was exactly what we can expect for every MP that – wait…what?

      • mickysavage 5.1.1
        24 November 2010 at 9:09 am

        Precisely.

        And Carter was pilloried for excessive legitimate use of the travel perk, not the break the rules potentially fraudulent type that has happened here.

        Where is the witch hunt?

        Do I sense differing standards here?

        • Herodotus 5.1.1.1
          24 November 2010 at 12:18 pm

          MS you mean Carter was pillared for roting the system. B.English,P Debunkle & co were also was within the rules re housing. Just because it is within the rules (written by MP’s) does not mean that it is tasteful to the public.

          • mickysavage 5.1.1.1.1
            24 November 2010 at 1:32 pm

            Herodotus

            I mean that Carter was hung drawn and quartered and then tarred and feathered because he flew too much and broke no rule that I know of.

            In comparison Wong has on the face of it engaged in the sort of behaviour which has caused others to be visited by the boys in blue.

            I would have thought this would have been more than enough for the tarring and feathering to start again but the media are very quiet.

            So do you agree there appears to be a double standard?

            • Herodotus 5.1.1.1.1.1
              24 November 2010 at 2:55 pm

              Some could say that a double standard appears so. I will await the report and then within an hour the Lab canditate to be announced for any by-election that could result from P Wongs past actions.
              MP’s get alot of crap- some well deserved, I get the impression that it is a hard and difficult profession- and as an employer of theirs in general I donot begrudge this benefit. It is those who abuse this benefit e.g. Carter & Wong. Considering the nos. of MP’s there are not many that do take us for a ride on this. Especially as it has been tightened up for only serving MP’s.
              I hope that as an unforeseen consequence we dont have only the wealthy stand for parliament. As with a few $m John Key can aford to pay for his family to accompany him for family time. Many I imagine cannot afford this. If SOME travel with a spouse makes a happier MP then we benefit from their output, even if it is an Act or Nat MP 😉 . We want the best on both sides of the benches performing for us.
              As an aside the MSN who attack minor spending, I would love for their expenses to be made public, then a mini bar or nice lunch may not be so bad.

    • Sanctuary 5.2
      24 November 2010 at 9:26 am

      What happened? They discovered it was easier to exploit angry and/or distraught relatives after crimes/industrial accidents/road crashes.

    • Maynard J 5.3
      25 November 2010 at 4:22 am

      The worst thing about this – the media will hound the families of Coasters and anyone else within sight about Pike River, but they won’t try and find out where Wong’s gone or why.

  6. jcuknz 6
    24 November 2010 at 8:41 am

    Soper says she is gardening 🙂

  7. john 7
    24 November 2010 at 9:06 am

    Two Wongs don’t make a Right!

  8. burt 8
    24 November 2010 at 9:29 am

    I think she is getting some tiling done on her holiday home.

  9. freedom 9
    24 November 2010 at 9:30 am

    and still the discussions, here and elsewhere are focused on the bloody travel perks.

    No-one in the media or on the street seem bothered by the running of multiple private business from Government offices. The registering of an Electorate office as a place to receive private business correspondence is totally out of line with Government office protocol, and a few NZ business laws got bent as well i suspect. I notice the Registrar of Companies has been very silent also, as this using the address of a Government office contravenes some basic registration protocols of NZ Companies. Namely the postal addresses for the company must be a private business, mailbox or residential address of the Company Directors. Then there is the fact, by there own admission, they had not declared the businesses. When will someone report on this illegal activity, let alone demand action?

    i sometimes wonder if i am not living in a really really long episode of the Twilight Zone

    • Jim Nald 9.1
      24 November 2010 at 10:00 am

      Interesting point. I was thinking yesterday that if I were a journalist, I would start searching the Companies Register for electorate office/Beehive/parliamentary addresses of Ministers.

    • insider 9.2
      24 November 2010 at 11:09 am

      I doubt an MP’s electorate office counts as a government office, even though taxpayers fund it through PS. I suspect it’s to do with the whole artifice of MPs being individuals and quasi independent even when their party is in govt.

      • freedom 9.2.1
        24 November 2010 at 12:05 pm

        Dejavu, this was all covered the other week, though as usual no action was seen by the media.

        An Electorate Office is NOT a private business premises, a private business post box, a private mail service provider or a residential address, so it can not be used to register a company or recieve mail for that company. END OF STORY

        Even the PM said the other week how Wong probably just had some mail sent to the office. The problem with his relaxed attitude to the correspondence is that he is admitting the practice is probably more widespread than we are aware of.

        This is the sort of illegal activity that must be stamped out of Parliament,
        on all sides, at all levels.

        The apparently innocuous act of receiving Business correspondence at a Parliamentary address not only contravenes clear rules of the Company Registrar, it is proof that Parliamentary services are being used to facilitate the operation of private businesses.

      • Zorr 9.2.2
        24 November 2010 at 12:15 pm

        It is taxpayer funded and therefore has rules around it stating that it is not for private business use.

  10. Jim Nald 10
    24 November 2010 at 9:58 am

    I’m a bit puzzled by all the cover up.
    Why really has Wong disappeared? Can’t she front up and what is she really hiding?
    Doesn’t Wong know herself how many times she has been overseas and what for?

    Granny says:
    “Speaker Lockwood Smith’s office was investigating and a report was expected within three weeks. Prime Minister John Key has said Mrs Wong shouldn’t comment until she had read the report.”

    Three weeks?!

    So we’re expecting a report of substantial proportion approximating the encyclopaedic? How many pages?

    Oh, three weeks plus time for her to read.

    Now, lemme count … 24th November today … so three weeks plus, let’s say, another week to read … WHOA! Christmas eve. Then, Parliament will be in recess. Then, New Year’s eve … erm and the January summer holidays.

    Hey, when will Parliament sit in Feb?

    Gosh, this rort had better be of huge and complex proportions to take that much time to untangle.

  11. freedom 11
    24 November 2010 at 10:07 am

    Do not underestimate the level of improper activity and dubious business dealings in this quagmire of a situation. I mean she is the business partner of Dame Jenny Shipley, and she has Bill Ralston to navigate the sandbars, not the best tugboat pilot to manouver this broken supertanker but no slouch either

  12. Colonial Viper 12
    24 November 2010 at 10:08 am

    They’ve hidden Wong away so she can’t frak up further in public.

    OR she is off busy trying to hide her tracks.

    I cannot believe the audacity and insolence of this National Govt, where is the anger of the media and of the people!!!

    • burt 12.1
      24 November 2010 at 10:45 am

      Battle fatigue from 9 years of Labour – we now expect this kind of self serving behaviour and we have already anticipated the “move on” and we already know that it’s not in the public interest to prosecute.

      • Colonial Viper 12.1.1
        24 November 2010 at 11:14 am

        Its in our interests this time.

        • burt 12.1.1.1
          24 November 2010 at 11:15 am

          Of course, it’s not the red team so accountability is required. I expect nothing less from Labour supporters.

          • Jim Nald 12.1.1.1.1
            24 November 2010 at 11:28 am

            Gotta fill in the gap opened up by media who are halfhearted pursuing this and conveying the perception that of course, it’s the blue team so accountability is not required. I expect much more from the fourth estate.

          • bbfloyd 12.1.1.1.2
            24 November 2010 at 2:35 pm

            ah burt,,, nice to hear from the qualified hypocrite once again… keep up the good work…don’t want anyone else usurping your spot.. they might be effective, and we can’t have that…

  13. tc 13
    24 November 2010 at 10:15 am

    Compare the treatment of carter and wong and it tells you all you need to know about the even handed nature of our MSM……whose a good lap dog then, go on rollover again….awww cute.

    • insider 13.1
      24 November 2010 at 11:42 am

      I think Carter suffered due to hubris, an unwillingness to face up, and maybe a little payback for nine years of unassailability plus the performance he put on which fed the media beast. Wong at least went quickly so is maybe getting some credit for that.

      • bbfloyd 13.1.1
        24 November 2010 at 2:44 pm

        insider…. this is the NZ government, not a defendant… you don’t get credit for a guilty plea here. and if she is, then the impartiality of our “fourth column” has to be called into question.

        only a goldfish wouldn’t remember the unremitting harassment more than one mp from the “left” has endured in the name of “getting to the truth of the matter”.. does it not seem time to give up the pretense and accept that the “getting to the truth of the matter” hasn’t even begun, or looks likely to…

        or, conversely, maybe our political journo’s have suddenly decided to become models of discretion and respect…

  14. Carol 14
    24 November 2010 at 12:10 pm

    So Wong is, unlike Carter, showing a great willingness to ‘front up”? She went quicker from her portfolio than Carter did from his shadow portfolio? And Wong has gone quicker from the National Party than Carter did from the Labour caucus?

    • mickysavage 14.1
      24 November 2010 at 1:37 pm

      Wong went from cabinet because it was that clear cut. It can at least be claimed that Carter did not break the rules.

      And Wong remains in Caucus. How can it be OK for an MP to break the rules but a sacking offence if she does this while being a Minister?

      The point of the post is that she should front up and say what happened. And that the media is awfully quiet.

  15. Herodotus 15
    24 November 2010 at 12:13 pm

    As Wong is not performing her electorate duties as a bare minimium and leaving over 40k unrepresented at parliament, I hope that she is having the $10 deduction off her salary, and I hope the $10 affects her spending habits. So we have had now 2 MP’s for a period of time now not represeting their constituencies.
    So where is the gone by lunchtime action?
    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10663227

    • Jim Nald 15.1
      24 November 2010 at 12:30 pm

      Wong is busy continuing dining.
      The PM flicked her on to smorgasboard.
      Thank you very muchly, taxpayers.

  16. the pink postman 16
    24 November 2010 at 2:38 pm

    Im thinking this Wong affair is a lot more serious than most of us realise.
    There are prominant leaders of National Party involved and there’s talk of Chinese business people making huge contributions to the Nats coffers.Why ? That needs to be answered . Shipley , Creech Burton and dairy farms then theres Key’s “closed trust funds ” Plus loads of money to the Nats. It all making a very nasty smell. In fact to be blunt it stinks.!!

  17. Irascible 17
    24 November 2010 at 2:56 pm

    Rumour has it that she is staying in the Hawaiian residence of the Minister of Tourism while he visits NZ for photo opportunities and to check his mailing address.
    Wong has gone to ground as Key and his advisors know that if she is ever fronted by a sharp, pushy investigative journalist, even those as obedient and compliant as those employed by the Herald and DomPost, she will incriminate herself as soon as she opens her mouth. Mind you, it will take the journalist a few minutes of analysis to follow the sentence constructions Pansy would use but with perseverance the truth would emerge.
    Key is playing for time. The reveal will happen during the xmas barbeque season and the resignation will take place in January so the election could be called for July. In the meantime Botany will stay without a MP, even though Pansy hasn’t been all that visible in the electorate since her election anyway.

  18. tc 18
    24 November 2010 at 3:17 pm

    Yup the PP….tis national tis dodgy….they don’t understand yet alone know how to practice due process or transparency.

    they are just terms used to get elected by fools who believe they mean it….sadly the joke’s on us and our kids.

  19. Jeremy Harris 19
    24 November 2010 at 3:44 pm

    I wonder if she’s being charged that massive $10 per day deterent for missing work…

    Talk about one rule for politicians and one for the electorate…

    • ianmac 19.1
      24 November 2010 at 4:20 pm

      And the new Act requires the absentee to produce a doctor’s certificate after 1 day! Different rules for MPs?

  20. Carol 20
    24 November 2010 at 7:12 pm

    Hodgson was strongly onto the Wong case in Question Time today. It turns out that Wong has taken 11 overseas trips since 2008, that John Key signed off on. 10 of these trips were officially on ministerial business. Hodgson was asking what Key new about these trips when he signed them off, but coudn’t get a clear answer. There were quite a few points of order afterwards, with Labour claiming that the PM spokesperson should have come to the House with that information as usual when there is a written question submitted in advance.

    And Mallard on Red Alert seems to have evidence that Wong has obtained significant funds put into her and Sammy’s account – the suggestion being that she was overseas raising funds for National.

Links to post

Recent Comments

Recent Posts

  • 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
    2 hours 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
    4 hours 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
    12 hours 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
    13 hours 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
    16 hours 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
    16 hours 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
    17 hours 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
    18 hours 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
    20 hours 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
    21 hours 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
    21 hours 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
    22 hours 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
    23 hours 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
    23 hours 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
    1 day 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
    1 day 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
    1 day 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
    1 day ago

  • Chris Bishop: Smokin’
    Yes. Correct. It was an election result. And now we are the elected government. ...
    My ThinksBy boonman
    2 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
    2 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
    2 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
    2 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
    3 days 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
    3 days 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
    3 days 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
    3 days 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
    4 days 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
    4 days ago

  • DAVID FARRAR: Hysterical bullshit
    Radio NZ reports: Te Pāti Māori’s co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer has accused the new government of “deliberate .. systemic genocide” over its policies to roll back the smokefree policy and the Māori Health Authority. The left love hysterical language. If you oppose racial quotas in laws, you are a racist. And now if you sack ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago

  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #48 2023
    Open access notables From this week's government/NGO section, longitudinal data is gold and Leisorowitz, Maibachi et al. continue to mine ore from the US public with Climate Change in the American Mind: Politics & Policy, Fall 2023: Drawing on a representative sample of the U.S. adult population, the authors describe how registered ...
    Skeptical Science
    4 days ago

  • ELE LUDEMANN: It wasn’t just $55 million
    Ele Ludemann writes –  Winston Peters reckons media outlets were bribed by the $55 million Public Interest Journalism Fund. He is not the first to make such an accusation. Last year, the Platform outlined conditions media signed up to in return for funds from the PJIF: . . . ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago

  • Weekly Roundup 1-December-2023
    Wow, it’s December already, and it’s a Friday. So here are few things that caught our attention recently. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt covered the new government’s coalition agreements and what they mean for transport. On Tuesday Matt looked at AT’s plans for fare increases ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    4 days ago

  • Shane MacGowan Is Gone.
    Late 1996, The Dogs Bollix, Tamaki Makaurau.I’m at the front of the bar yelling my order to the bartender, jostling with other thirsty punters on a Friday night, keen to piss their wages up against a wall letting loose. The black stuff, long luscious pints of creamy goodness. Back down ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago

  • The Hoon around the week to Dec 1
    Nicola Willis, Chris Bishop and other National, ACT and NZ First MPs applaud the signing of the coalition agreements, which included the reversal of anti-smoking measures while accelerating tax cuts for landlords. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago

  • 2023 More Reading: November (+ Writing Update)
    Completed reads for November: A Modern Utopia, by H.G. Wells The Vampire (poem), by Heinrich August Ossenfelder The Corpus Hermeticum The Corpus Hermeticum is Mead’s translation. Now, this is indeed a very quiet month for reading. But there is a reason for that… You see, ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    4 days ago

  • 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.The two coalition agreements – one National and ACT, the other National and New Zealand First – are more than policy documents. They also describe the processes of the ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    5 days ago

  • Questions a nine year old might ask the new Prime Minister
    First QuestionYou’re going to crack down on people ram-raiding dairies, because you say hard-working dairy owners shouldn’t have to worry about getting ram-raided.But once the chemist shops have pseudoephedrine in them again, they're going to get ram-raided all the time. Do chemists not work as hard as dairy owners?Second QuestionYou ...
    More than a fieldingBy David Slack
    5 days ago

  • Questions a nine year old might ask the new Prime Minister
    First QuestionYou’re going to crack down on people ram-raiding dairies, because you say hard-working dairy owners shouldn’t have to worry about getting ram-raided.But once the chemist shops have pseudoephedrine in them again, they're going to get ram-raided all the time. Do chemists not work as hard as dairy owners?Second QuestionYou ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago

  • Finally
    Henry Kissinger is finally dead. Good fucking riddance. While Americans loved him, he was a war criminal, responsible for most of the atrocities of the final quarter of the twentieth century. Cambodia. Bangladesh. Chile. East Timor. All Kissinger. Because of these crimes, Americans revere him as a "statesman" (which says ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago

  • Government in a hurry – Luxon lists 49 priorities in 100-day plan while Peters pledges to strength...
    Buzz from the Beehive Yes, ministers in the new government are delivering speeches and releasing press statements. But the message on the government’s official website was the same as it has been for the past several days, when Point of Order went looking for news from the Beehive that had ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago

  • DAVID FARRAR: Luxon is absolutely right
    David Farrar writes  –  1 News reports: Christopher Luxon says he was told by some Kiwis on the campaign trail they “didn’t know” the difference between Waka Kotahi, Te Pūkenga and Te Whatu Ora. Speaking to Breakfast, the incoming prime minister said having English first on government agencies will “make sure” ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • Top 10 at 10 am for Thursday, Nov 30
    There are fears that mooted changes to building consent liability could end up driving the building industry into an uninsured hole. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Here’s my pick of the top 10 news and analysis links elsewhere as of 10 am on Thursday, November 30, including:The new Government’s ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell on how climate change threatens cricket‘s future
    Well that didn’t last long, did it? Mere days after taking on what he called the “awesome responsibility” of being Prime Minister, M Christopher Luxon has started blaming everyone else, and complaining that he has inherited “economic vandalism on an unprecedented scale” – which is how most of us are ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    5 days ago

  • We need to talk about Tory.
    The first I knew of the news about Tory Whanau was when a tweet came up in my feed.The sort of tweet that makes you question humanity, or at least why you bother with Twitter. Which is increasingly a cesspit of vile inhabitants who lurk spreading negativity, hate, and every ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago

  • Dangling Transport Solutions
    Cable Cars, Gondolas, Ropeways and Aerial Trams are all names for essentially the same technology and the world’s biggest maker of them are here to sell them as an public transport solution. Stuff reports: Austrian cable car company Doppelmayr has launched its case for adding aerial cable cars to New ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    5 days ago

  • November AMA
    Hi,It’s been awhile since I’ve done an Ask-Me-Anything on here, so today’s the day. Ask anything you like in the comments section, and I’ll be checking in today and tomorrow to answer.Leave a commentNext week I’ll be giving away a bunch of these Mister Organ blu-rays for readers in New ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    5 days ago

  • National’s early moves adding to cost of living pressure
    The cost of living grind continues, and the economic and inflation honeymoon is over before it began. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: PM Christopher Luxon unveiled his 100 day plan yesterday with an avowed focus of reducing cost-of-living pressures, but his Government’s initial moves and promises are actually elevating ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago

  • Backwards to the future
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has confirmed that it will be back to the future on planning legislation. This will be just one of a number of moves which will see the new government go backwards as it repeals and cost-cuts its way into power. They will completely repeal one ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago

  • New initiatives in science and technology could point the way ahead for Luxon government
    As the new government settles into the Beehive, expectations are high that it can sort out some  of  the  economic issues  confronting  New Zealand. It may take time for some new  ministers to get to grips with the range of their portfolio work and responsibilities before they can launch the  changes that  ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    6 days ago

  • Treaty pledge to secure funding is contentious – but is Peters being pursued by a lynch mob after ...
    TV3 political editor Jenna Lynch was among the corps of political reporters who bridled, when Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters told them what he thinks of them (which is not much). She was unabashed about letting her audience know she had bridled. More usefully, she drew attention to something which ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

  • How long does this last?
    I have a clear memory of every election since 1969 in this plucky little nation of ours. I swear I cannot recall a single one where the question being asked repeatedly in the first week of the new government was: how long do you reckon they’ll last? And that includes all ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago

  • National’s giveaway politics
    We already know that national plans to boost smoking rates to collect more tobacco tax so they can give huge tax-cuts to mega-landlords. But this morning that policy got even more obscene - because it turns out that the tax cut is retrospective: Residential landlords will be able to ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago

  • CHRIS TROTTER: Who’s driving the right-wing bus?
    Who’s At The Wheel? The electorate’s message, as aggregated in the polling booths on 14 October, turned out to be a conservative political agenda stronger than anything New Zealand has seen in five decades. In 1975, Bill Rowling was run over by just one bus, with Rob Muldoon at the wheel. In 2023, ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago

  • GRAHAM ADAMS:  Media knives flashing for Luxon’s government
    The fear and loathing among legacy journalists is astonishing Graham Adams writes – No one is going to die wondering how some of the nation’s most influential journalists personally view the new National-led government. It has become abundantly clear within a few days of the coalition agreements ...
    Point of OrderBy gadams1000
    6 days ago

  • Top 10 news links for Wednesday, Nov 29
    TL;DR: Here’s my pick of top 10 news links elsewhere for Wednesday November 29, including:The early return of interest deductibility for landlords could see rebates paid on previous taxes and the cost increase to $3 billion from National’s initial estimate of $2.1 billion, CTU Economist Craig Renney estimated here last ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago

  • Smokefree Fallout and a High Profile Resignation.
    The day after being sworn in the new cabinet met yesterday, to enjoy their honeymoon phase. You remember, that period after a new government takes power where the country, and the media, are optimistic about them, because they haven’t had a chance to stuff anything about yet.Sadly the nuptials complete ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago

  • As Cabinet revs up, building plans go on hold
    Wellington Council hoardings proclaim its preparations for population growth, but around the country councils are putting things on hold in the absence of clear funding pathways for infrastructure, and despite exploding migrant numbers. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Cabinet meets in earnest today to consider the new Government’s 100-day ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago

  • National takes over infrastructure
    Though New Zealand First may have had ambitions to run the infrastructure portfolios, National would seem to have ended up firmly in control of them.  POLITIK has obtained a private memo to members of Infrastructure NZ yesterday, which shows that the peak organisation for infrastructure sees  National MPs Chris ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    6 days ago

  • At a glance – Evidence for global warming
    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
    7 days ago

  • Who’s Driving The Right-Wing Bus?
    Who’s At The Wheel? The electorate’s message, as aggregated in the polling booths on 14 October, turned out to be a conservative political agenda stronger than anything New Zealand has seen in five decades. In 1975, Bill Rowling was run over by just one bus, with Rob Muldoon at the wheel. In ...
    Bowalley Road
    7 days ago

  • Sanity break
    Cheers to reader Deane for this quote from Breakfast TV today:Chloe Swarbrick to Brook van Velden re the coalition agreement: “... an unhinged grab-bag of hot takes from your drunk uncle at Christmas”Cheers also to actual Prime Minister of a country Christopher Luxon for dorking up his swearing-in vows.But that's enough ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    7 days ago

  • Sanity break
    Cheers to reader Deane for this quote from Breakfast TV today:Chloe Swarbrick to Brook van Velden re the coalition agreement: “... an unhinged grab-bag of hot takes from your drunk uncle at Christmas”Cheers also to actual Prime Minister of a country Christopher Luxon for dorking up his swearing-in vows.But that's enough ...
    More than a fieldingBy David Slack
    7 days ago

  • National’s murderous smoking policy
    One of the big underlying problems in our political system is the prevalence of short-term thinking, most usually seen in the periodic massive infrastructure failures at a local government level caused by them skimping on maintenance to Keep Rates Low. But the new government has given us a new example, ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    7 days ago

  • NZ has a chance to rise again as our new government gets spending under control
    New Zealand has  a chance  to  rise  again. Under the  previous  government, the  number of New Zealanders below the poverty line was increasing  year by year. The Luxon-led government  must reverse that trend – and set about stabilising  the  pillars  of the economy. After the  mismanagement  of the outgoing government created   huge ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    7 days ago

  • KARL DU FRESNE: Media and the new government
    Two articles by Karl du Fresne bring media coverage of the new government into considerations.  He writes –    Tuesday, November 28, 2023 The left-wing media needed a line of attack, and they found one The left-wing media pack wasted no time identifying the new government’s weakest point. Seething over ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    7 days ago

  • PHILIP CRUMP:  Team of rivals – a CEO approach to government leadership
    The work begins Philip Crump wrote this article ahead of the new government being sworn in yesterday – Later today the new National-led coalition government will be sworn in, and the hard work begins. At the core of government will be three men – each a leader ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    7 days ago

  • Black Friday
    As everyone who watches television or is on the mailing list for any of our major stores will confirm, “Black Friday” has become the longest running commercial extravaganza and celebration in our history. Although its origins are obscure (presumably dreamt up by American salesmen a few years ago), it has ...
    Bryan GouldBy Bryan Gould
    7 days ago

  • In Defense of the Media.
    Yesterday the Ministers in the next government were sworn in by our Governor General. A day of tradition and ceremony, of decorum and respect. Usually.But yesterday Winston Peters, the incoming Deputy Prime Minister, and Foreign Minister, of our nation used it, as he did with the signing of the coalition ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    7 days ago

  • Top 10 news links at 10 am for Tuesday, Nov 28
    Nicola Willis’ first move was ‘spilling the tea’ on what she called the ‘sobering’ state of the nation’s books, but she had better be able to back that up in the HYEFU. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Here’s my pick of top 10 news links elsewhere at 10 am ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    7 days ago

  • PT use up but fare increases coming
    Yesterday Auckland Transport were celebrating, as the most recent Sunday was the busiest Sunday they’ve ever had. That’s a great outcome and I’m sure the ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    1 week ago

  • The very opposite of social investment
    Nicola Willis (in blue) at the signing of the coalition agreement, before being sworn in as both Finance Minister and Social Investment Minister. National’s plan to unwind anti-smoking measures will benefit her in the first role, but how does it stack up from a social investment viewpoint? Photo: Lynn Grieveson ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago

  • Giving Tuesday
    For the first time "in history" we decided to jump on the "Giving Tuesday" bandwagon in order to make you aware of the options you have to contribute to our work! Projects supported by Skeptical Science Inc. Skeptical Science Skeptical Science is an all-volunteer organization but ...
    Skeptical Science
    1 week ago

  • Let's open the books with Nicotine Willis
    Let’s say it’s 1984,and there's a dreary little nation at the bottom of the Pacific whose name rhymes with New Zealand,and they've just had an election.Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, will you look at the state of these books we’ve opened,cries the incoming government, will you look at all this mountain ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago

  • Climate Change: Stopping oil
    National is promising to bring back offshore oil and gas drilling. Naturally, the Greens have organised a petition campaign to try and stop them. You should sign it - every little bit helps, and as the struggle over mining conservation land showed, even National can be deterred if enough people ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 week ago

  • Don’t accept Human Rights Commission reading of data on Treaty partnership – read the survey fin...
    Wellington is braced for a “massive impact’ from the new government’s cutting public service jobs, The Post somewhat grimly reported today. Expectations of an economic and social jolt are based on the National-Act coalition agreement to cut public service numbers in each government agency in a cost-trimming exercise  “informed by” head ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 week ago

  • New Zealand welcomes European Parliament vote on the NZ-EU Free Trade Agreement
    A significant milestone in ratifying the NZ-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was reached last night, with 524 of the 705 member European Parliament voting in favour to approve the agreement. “I’m delighted to hear of the successful vote to approve the NZ-EU FTA in the European Parliament overnight. This is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

  • Further humanitarian support for Gaza, the West Bank and Israel
    The Government is contributing a further $5 million to support the response to urgent humanitarian needs in Gaza, the West Bank and Israel, bringing New Zealand’s total contribution to the humanitarian response so far to $10 million. “New Zealand is deeply saddened by the loss of civilian life and the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

Page generated in The Standard by Wordpress at 2023-12-04T19:43:28+00:00