Your PM at work for you

Written By: - Date published: 7:35 am, September 20th, 2011 - 38 comments
Categories: john key, leadership, national, superannuation - Tags: ,

Two news snippets yesterday seemed to me to capture the essence of John Key PM.  The first:

Govt rejects ‘fairer’ pension scheme suggestions

The Prime Minister said he has “too much on his plate” to act on recommendations to make the pension scheme fairer.

This wasn’t the big, contentious stuff like raising the age of eligibility. Key is rejecting minor, sensible changes out of hand:

Now the Government has also rejected some smaller suggestions included in her report. “It’s disappointing because I thought the last three recommendations that we were waiting for an answer for, were about fairness,” Crossan said.

Too busy to take action? Can’t be bothered? Nice one John. On to the second example:

Quake insurance coming right – Key

The insurance situation in Christchurch will settle down and more companies are coming into the market, Prime Minister John Key says.

Any idea when it will “settle down” John? Want to put a time frame on that? Because I can tell you just from the examples that I know that insurance hassles are making life hell for people in Christchurch right here and now.

Mr Key said some people in Christchurch were able to get insurance but others were struggling.

“There are people coming into the market,” he said. “Lloyds of London put together a syndicate that insured a property the other day.

Really? Seriously? Lloyds of London, one of the biggest insurance companies in the world, has but together a syndicate that insured “a property” “the other day”? One? One property? And this is a sign that quake insurance is coming right?

Perhaps the best thing that John Key PM can do for NZ is go on another nice long holiday and let Bill English take over.

38 comments on “Your PM at work for you ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. ghostwhowalksnz 1
    20 September 2011 at 7:51 am

    The Lloyds syndicate deal was probably for something like a shopping mall.

    New homeowners ? They can just leave their house un- completed till the insurers are ‘ready’

  2. vto 2
    20 September 2011 at 7:53 am

    he is such a lightweight.

  3. Bill 3
    20 September 2011 at 8:03 am

    Why hasn’t the Fat Controller simply issued an ultimatum to the insurance industry along the line of that if they don’t insure Ch/ch and peg any premiums to nothing above x%, then the entire insurance industry in NZ will be brought into public ownership?

    Insurance companies want, above all, to make money. They would have played ball if faced with the prospect of losing an entire market, ie NZ.

    As it is, they are the pipers calling the tune and the Fat Controller is simply jiggling with a big fat frown on his coupon.

    • queenstfarmer 3.1
      20 September 2011 at 9:13 am

      Why hasn’t the Fat Controller simply issued an ultimatum to the insurance industry… then the entire insurance industry in NZ will be brought into public ownership

      You need to learn the difference between insurance and re-insurance. The NZ insurance companies (which could theoretically be nationalised) only actually insure a small % of the risk. Most of the risk is covered by reinsurers. These are international companies that can’t be “brought into public ownership”.

      It is critical to get the reinsurers on-side, or else the entire NZ industry that you want the Govt to take over, will virtually cease to exist.

      • Draco T Bastard 3.1.1
        20 September 2011 at 1:31 pm

        Actually, the best thing we could do is tell the re-insurers to eff off and nationalise insurance. Better service, better premiums and no money heading offshore to over-fill some parasites wallet.

        • Enough is Enough 3.1.1.1
          20 September 2011 at 1:51 pm

          There are billions of dollars floating in now, and floodiing in next year, from off shore reinsurers Draco.

          Where would you expect that cash to come from if we told them to eff off.

          • Draco T Bastard 3.1.1.1.1
            20 September 2011 at 6:29 pm

            Our taxes. Contrary to what you believe, money is not a resource and Chch will be built entirely with our own resources. Foreign money coming means absolutely nothing.

  4. scotty 4
    20 September 2011 at 8:13 am

    He also pulled out the bullshit line he used in the Hardtalk interview.

    something like,” For every property thats having insurance issues ,I can show you one that dosen’t.
    Excepted without question by MSM as usual.

    • drx 4.1
      20 September 2011 at 8:57 am

      >>For every property thats having insurance issues ,I can show you one that doesn’t.

      SO did he say that there are 50% having insurance problems?
      That seems excessive!!

  5. Pascal's bookie 5
    20 September 2011 at 8:17 am

    John Pagani tracks Key’s shifting rhetoric and positions here:

    http://johnpagani.posterous.com/do-the-same-standards-apply-to-key

  6. ECOGIRL 6
    20 September 2011 at 8:22 am

    No not Bill English to take over. We would have a further mess.

    Labour with Phill Goff to take over, with the plan and compassion.

    Also, why Lloyds of London? Am sick to death of foreign ownership of everything in NZ. How can we own OUR FUTURE when every Tom, Dick and Harry from off shore runs everything and silos of money leave the country daily.
    Buy house insurance with KIWI BANK, its OURS

    • insider 6.1
      20 September 2011 at 10:38 am

      What we are doing is asking those overseas people to please share some of our risk. If you want the whole risk to fall on you, good luck but I wouldn’t want that bill. Just as many hands make light work, so many pockets lowers the premiums.

      • bbfloyd 6.1.1
        20 September 2011 at 11:04 am

        don’t talk drivel insider…….. even for you, that was utter rubbish….. this isn’t fantasyland…. walt disney isn’t about to fix things up so the beautiful swan does become the star…. this is reality….. where we have a spineless, utterly unimaginative prime minister, backed by sociopathic, insanely greedy corporate puppies, forcing a whole city to sit in the snow and wait while they use them for political cannon fodder…….

        and all because they are trying to cover for the fact that they threw our money away and now can’t deal with the events that followed…. through irresponsible, shortsighted incompetence coupled with a dangerous lack of vision…. or the foresight relevant to how societies actually function properly…..we now have, once more, a morally and intellectually bankrupt government with nothing but lies and propaganda to cover the paucity of leadership…..

        the day we get a fourth column worth more than a tin of goat shit, then we have some chance of true leadership being recognised for what it is, and vacuous crosby/textor manipulation for what it is in truth…. then, and only then, will the “grown up” debates so necessary be able to take place…

      • Draco T Bastard 6.1.2
        20 September 2011 at 1:33 pm

        The whole risk will fall on us anyway as the re-insurers and insurers up the premiums to boost their profits.

      • mik e 6.1.3
        21 September 2011 at 7:18 pm

        Our balance of payments has go worse virtually every year since 1974 having overseas investment has a big downslide.

      • mik e 6.1.4
        21 September 2011 at 11:22 pm

        They are prepared to take our money when everything is fine but when they have to do the job they are handsomely rewarded for these companies are no where to be found.

  7. headbanger 7
    20 September 2011 at 8:41 am

    John Key does not appear to understand the severity of this situation.
    No building work (apart from knocking things down) has happened in Canterbury in a whole year because of lack of insurance. Builders, buyers, sellers, renters, businesses – nothing. Plans cannot be started and previously finished homes sit empty. 
    Without insurance everything falls apart. No one between Ashburton and Kaikoura can even get new contents insurance! And what happens if companies stop renewing policies?
    Leaving it to the market will result in Christchurch becoming a ghost town in a very short time. For example, if people get their red-zone payouts before insurance is offered they CANNOT buy elsewhere in this region whether they want to or not! No bank will allow a mortgage on a property without insurance so they will all have to leave.
    Rather than taking on this problem like Labour, John Key is just hoping it will go away. Is Christchurch too big to fail? Key is gambling a $4 billion undeniable cost against a likely loss to the NZ economy of literally hundreds of billions of dollars bringing the entire country into recession if Christchurch does fail because of his lack of action.
    Labour’s plan is a breath of fresh air and finally gives this city and area some hope. Please let this happen!

  8. marsman 8
    20 September 2011 at 8:56 am

    John Key is the Prime Mincer of NZ, that’s what he does best, all the other stuff is just too much hard work for him. We MUST get rid of this pillock and his gang of plundering oafs.

  9. thejackal 9
    20 September 2011 at 9:13 am

    What is the point in having insurance if they renege of the deal? Without a strong government ensuring that the insurers do their jobs, we’re going to have a Christchurch left in dust. I have absolutely no faith that the ineffectual governance of National with the flip flopping John Key and bumbling of Gerry Brownlee is going to do anything but give their mates large payouts in some sort of crony dream come true that is a nightmare for Christchurch. New Zealand needs Christchurch, let’s get a government that makes sure it’s rebuilt.

    • Draco T Bastard 9.1
      20 September 2011 at 1:42 pm

      Without a strong government ensuring that the insurers do their jobs…

      The government is owned by the corporations and it’s been that way for around three decades. Actually having to pay out would cut into the insurance companies profits and so the government is working to protect those profits by letting the insurance dodge the claims.

  10. Tigger 10
    20 September 2011 at 9:14 am

    He’s far too busy making vacuous complaints to the BSA to worry about little stuff!

  11. Anthony 11
    20 September 2011 at 9:14 am

    He does have a lot on his plate, like figuring out another excuse to stand next to the All Blacks during the national anthem.

  12. Wyndham 12
    20 September 2011 at 9:20 am

    No problem to bail out SCF (billions) but to help ChCh citizens by buying up land for sections (millions) and then on-selling them at cost, is not affordable. According to the NACT spokesman on finance, John Key.

    At least he’s appeared in public again after disappearing following the RWC opening transport fiasco.

  13. Adrian 13
    20 September 2011 at 9:56 am

    A mate of mine, a builder ( with a site managers certificate ) has been “invited” to work in Chch, he turned it down because he found out that he would be paid $40 an hour but charged out at $102 an hour by Fletchers. Can anybody confirm this disparity in rates? If it is true it is the biggest rort in years. P.s. Not in a recession? A small town on state highway in top of S.I is 30% down on tourist and passing thru turnover.

    • marsman 13.1
      20 September 2011 at 11:15 am

      Didn’t Shipley hand NZ Forest Products to Fletchers on a plate? Is the same Shipley not on the Board of Directors of Fletchers? Isn’t the same Shipley also being paid to help oversee the rebuild of Christchurch? Corruption anyone?

      • tc 13.1.1
        20 September 2011 at 11:12 pm

        Shipley’s also ensuring Genesis play their part in the nat’s generator shuffle so they suck the best part of a billion out of the power sector via the ‘special’ dividend meridian paid them from Genesis’s borrowed purchase value ….that’s scandalous in it’s own right as they’ve effectively burgled it from the generation platform. No extra capacity, just about a billion poorer thanks to some more of that bankster styles.

        As for fletchers, same old same old….and a large reason why construction in NZ is overpriced because Fletchers have a monopoly or virtual one in Gib, roofing etc.etc watch this get even worse and non retrievable in some industrys if they blag another term but hey that’s all part of the hollow mens master plan.

    • Vicky32 13.2
      20 September 2011 at 3:58 pm

      A mate of mine, a builder ( with a site managers certificate ) has been “invited” to work in Chch,

      A relative of mine who was a builder did go to Christchurch to work, and died of a heart attack just weeks later – he was afaik vastly over-worked..

  14. randal 14
    20 September 2011 at 10:03 am

    JK’s government is rapidly turning into a Knee Jerk style operation similar to the pinhead who reacts to the last thing anybody said to them.

  15. Tombstone 15
    20 September 2011 at 10:09 am

    FFS! When are people going to wake up to this incompetent bunch of clowns in Govt and start demanding a lot better from them?! I live in Christchurch and believe you me, people are leaving in droves. The recovery effort is a shambles and people are growing seriously angry about it now. From the CBD VIP tours to the ongoing problems with insurance and EQC payouts the whole thing has gone from one bloody disaster to another and Key should be arseholed as Prime Minister as far as I’m concerned because he’s the big cheese and he’s the man who ultimately has the final say. Time to stop apologizing for these buggers and time to get Christchurch rebuilt and back online. This is hurting the entire country so people voting National need to seriously think about that when it comes to the election. As for the Fat Controller and Sutton – f*cking hopeless, the pair of them! They can piss off as well along with CERA!

  16. vto 16
    20 September 2011 at 8:10 pm

    Our PM came onto the telly tonight and I couldn’t hear a thing because of the racket and I thought I would like to hear what the duffer had to say until the very next thought when I remembered that even if you can understand what he says it is never anything worth anything and so the racket continued…

    did he say anything worthwhile?

    • mik e 16.1
      21 September 2011 at 7:22 pm

      Shokey.Whenever he is lying he speeds up his speaking and mumbles lower and lower till you can’t hear what he is saying.

  17. Frank Macskasy 17
    27 September 2011 at 1:00 am

    If foreign companies don’t want to insure ChCh properties, then we have to step up and do it ourselves.

    An idea I have is to re-build the old “State Insurance”, using the current EQC. Call it “EQC-Plus”, for want of a better term. http://fmacskasy.wordpress.com/2011/09/23/the-free-market-is-a-fair-weather-friend/

    No doubt neoliberals will balk at the idea and find reasons why this can’t be done.

    Ok, we listen to them.

    (Then we go ahead and do it anyway. If we listenened to neo-liberal naysayers all the time, we’d still be sitting in caves… )

    The idea is that EQC-Plus acts as a primary insurance company-of-last-resort (or even first resort!) and insures ChCh properties. This achieves two things;

    1. Tops up EQC which was depleted over the last year

    2. Gives security to homeowners so that banks will be confident enough to extend mortgages

    Once again, society (through the State) meets the needs of it’s citizens, whilst private companies twiddle their fingers.

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

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

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

  • Top 10 for Tuesday, December 4
    The RBNZ governor is citing high net migration and profit-led inflation as factors in the bank’s hawkish stance. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s my pick of the top 10 news and analysis links elsewhere on the morning of Tuesday, December 5, including:Reserve Bank Governor Adrian Orr says high net migration and ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago

  • Nicola Willis' 'show me the money' moment
    Willis has accused labour of “economic vandalism’, while Robertson described her comments as a “desperate diversion from somebody who can't make their tax package add up”. There will now be an intense focus on December 20 to see whether her hyperbole is backed up by true surprises. Photo montage: Lynn ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago

  • CRL costs money but also provides huge benefits
    The City Rail Link has been in the headlines a bit recently so I thought I’d look at some of them. First up, yesterday the NZ Herald ran this piece about the ongoing costs of the CRL. Auckland ratepayers will be saddled with an estimated bill of $220 million each ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    4 days ago

  • And I don't want the world to see us.
    Is this the most shambolic government in the history of New Zealand? Given that parliament hasn’t even opened they’ve managed quite a list of achievements to date.The Smokefree debacle trading lives for tax cuts, the Trumpian claims of bribery in the Media, an International award for indifference, and today the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 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
    5 days ago

  • Climate Change: Fossils
    When the new government promised to allow new offshore oil and gas exploration, they were warned that there would be international criticism and reputational damage. Naturally, they arrogantly denied any possibility that that would happen. And then they finally turned up at COP, to criticism from Palau, and a "fossil ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago

  • GEOFFREY MILLER:  NZ’s foreign policy resets on AUKUS, Gaza and Ukraine
    Geoffrey Miller writes – New Zealand’s international relations are under new management. And Winston Peters, the new foreign minister, is already setting a change agenda. As expected, this includes a more pro-US positioning when it comes to the Pacific – where Peters will be picking up where he ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell on the government’s smokefree laws debacle
    The most charitable explanation for National’s behaviour over the smokefree legislation is that they have dutifully fulfilled the wishes of the Big Tobacco lobby and then cast around – incompetently, as it turns out – for excuses that might sell this health policy U-turn to the public. The less charitable ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    5 days ago

  • Top 10 links at 10 am for Monday, December 4
    As Deb Te Kawa writes in an op-ed, the new Government seems to have immediately bought itself fights with just about everyone. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Here’s my pick of the top 10 news and analysis links elsewhere as of 10 am on Monday December 4, including:Palau’s President ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago

  • Be Honest.
    Let’s begin today by thinking about job interviews.During my career in Software Development I must have interviewed hundreds of people, hired at least a hundred, but few stick in the memory.I remember one guy who was so laid back he was practically horizontal, leaning back in his chair until his ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago

  • Geoffrey Miller: New Zealand’s foreign policy resets on AUKUS, Gaza and Ukraine
    New Zealand’s international relations are under new management. And Winston Peters, the new foreign minister, is already setting a change agenda. As expected, this includes a more pro-US positioning when it comes to the Pacific – where Peters will be picking up where he left off. Peters sought to align ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    5 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
    5 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
    6 days ago

  • Affirmative Action.
    Affirmative Action was a key theme at this election, although I don’t recall anyone using those particular words during the campaign.They’re positive words, and the way the topic was talked about was anything but. It certainly wasn’t a campaign of saying that Affirmative Action was a good thing, but that, ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago

  • 100 days of something
    It was at the end of the Foxton straights, at the end of 1978, at 100km/h, that someone tried to grab me from behind on my Yamaha.They seemed to be yanking my backpack. My first thought was outrage. My second was: but how? Where have they come from? And my ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 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

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

  • Ministers visit Hawke’s Bay to grasp recovery needs
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon joined Cyclone Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell and Transport and Local Government Minister Simeon Brown, to meet leaders of cyclone and flood-affected regions in the Hawke’s Bay. The visit reinforced the coalition Government’s commitment to support the region and better understand its ongoing requirements, Mr Mitchell says.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • New Zealand condemns malicious cyber activity
    New Zealand has joined the UK and other partners in condemning malicious cyber activity conducted by the Russian Government, Minister Responsible for the Government Communications Security Bureau Judith Collins says. The statement follows the UK’s attribution today of malicious cyber activity impacting its domestic democratic institutions and processes, as well ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • Disestablishment of Te Pūkenga begins
    The Government has begun the process of disestablishing Te Pūkenga as part of its 100-day plan, Minister for Tertiary Education and Skills Penny Simmonds says.  “I have started putting that plan into action and have met with the chair and chief Executive of Te Pūkenga to advise them of my ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Climate Change Minister to attend COP28 in Dubai
    Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will be leaving for Dubai today to attend COP28, the 28th annual UN climate summit, this week. Simon Watts says he will push for accelerated action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement, deliver New Zealand’s national statement and connect with partner countries, private sector leaders ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • New Zealand to host 2024 Pacific defence meeting
    Defence Minister Judith Collins yesterday announced New Zealand will host next year’s South Pacific Defence Ministers’ Meeting (SPDMM). “Having just returned from this year’s meeting in Nouméa, I witnessed first-hand the value of meeting with my Pacific counterparts to discuss regional security and defence matters. I welcome the opportunity to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Study shows need to remove distractions in class
    The Government is committed to lifting school achievement in the basics and that starts with removing distractions so young people can focus on their learning, Education Minister Erica Stanford says.   The 2022 PISA results released this week found that Kiwi kids ranked 5th in the world for being distracted ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Minister sets expectations of Commissioner
    Today I met with Police Commissioner Andrew Coster to set out my expectations, which he has agreed to, says Police Minister Mark Mitchell. Under section 16(1) of the Policing Act 2008, the Minister can expect the Police Commissioner to deliver on the Government’s direction and priorities, as now outlined in ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • New Zealand needs a strong and stable ETS
    New Zealand needs a strong and stable Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) that is well placed for the future, after emission units failed to sell for the fourth and final auction of the year, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says.  At today’s auction, 15 million New Zealand units (NZUs) – each ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • PISA results show urgent need to teach the basics
    With 2022 PISA results showing a decline in achievement, Education Minister Erica Stanford is confident that the Coalition Government’s 100-day plan for education will improve outcomes for Kiwi kids.  The 2022 PISA results show a significant decline in the performance of 15-year-old students in maths compared to 2018 and confirms ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Collins leaves for Pacific defence meeting
    Defence Minister Judith Collins today departed for New Caledonia to attend the 8th annual South Pacific Defence Ministers’ meeting (SPDMM). “This meeting is an excellent opportunity to meet face-to-face with my Pacific counterparts to discuss regional security matters and to demonstrate our ongoing commitment to the Pacific,” Judith Collins says. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Working for Families gets cost of living boost
    Putting more money in the pockets of hard-working families is a priority of this Coalition Government, starting with an increase to Working for Families, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says. “We are starting our 100-day plan with a laser focus on bringing down the cost of living, because that is what ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Post-Cabinet press conference
    Most weeks, following Cabinet, the Prime Minister holds a press conference for members of the Parliamentary Press Gallery. This page contains the transcripts from those press conferences, which are supplied by Hansard to the Office of the Prime Minister. It is important to note that the transcripts have not been edited ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Lake Onslow pumped hydro scheme scrapped
    The Government has axed the $16 billion Lake Onslow pumped hydro scheme championed by the previous government, Energy Minister Simeon Brown says. “This hugely wasteful project was pouring money down the drain at a time when we need to be reining in spending and focussing on rebuilding the economy and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago

  • NZ welcomes further pause in fighting in Gaza
    New Zealand welcomes the further one-day extension of the pause in fighting, which will allow the delivery of more urgently-needed humanitarian aid into Gaza and the release of more hostages, Foreign Minister Winston Peters said. “The human cost of the conflict is horrific, and New Zealand wants to see the violence ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Condolences on passing of Henry Kissinger
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters today expressed on behalf of the New Zealand Government his condolences to the family of former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who has passed away at the age of 100 at his home in Connecticut. “While opinions on his legacy are varied, Secretary Kissinger was ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Backing our kids to learn the basics
    Every child deserves a world-leading education, and the Coalition Government is making that a priority as part of its 100-day plan. Education Minister Erica Stanford says that will start with banning cellphone use at school and ensuring all primary students spend one hour on reading, writing, and maths each day. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • US Business Summit Speech – Regional stability through trade
    I would like to begin by echoing the Prime Minister’s thanks to the organisers of this Summit, Fran O’Sullivan and the Auckland Business Chamber.  I want to also acknowledge the many leading exporters, sector representatives, diplomats, and other leaders we have joining us in the room. In particular, I would like ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Keynote Address to the United States Business Summit, Auckland
    Good morning. Thank you, Rosemary, for your warm introduction, and to Fran and Simon for this opportunity to make some brief comments about New Zealand’s relationship with the United States.  This is also a chance to acknowledge my colleague, Minister for Trade Todd McClay, Ambassador Tom Udall, Secretary of Foreign ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • India New Zealand Business Council Speech, India as a Strategic Priority
    Good morning, tēnā koutou and namaskar. Many thanks, Michael, for your warm welcome. I would like to acknowledge the work of the India New Zealand Business Council in facilitating today’s event and for the Council’s broader work in supporting a coordinated approach for lifting New Zealand-India relations. I want to also ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Coalition Government unveils 100-day plan
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has laid out the Coalition Government’s plan for its first 100 days from today. “The last few years have been incredibly tough for so many New Zealanders. People have put their trust in National, ACT and NZ First to steer them towards a better, more prosperous ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

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

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