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The Electoral Finance (Reform) Bill introduced to parliament yesterday contains a major change from what had been previously indicated. The regulated period for limiting election expenditure, as well as the election date itself, is now at the discretion of the Prime Minister. It could be…
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Update2: IrishBill: The facebook email has been released: Things went really well she wasn't that scary I dropped the tears a few times and she felt sorry for me wont put me back in the media and get me hurt again and willing to talk…
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The Nat/ACT/Maori Party government has seen 55,000 more people go on benefits. They want to work. There aren't enough jobs. How to make life worse for families fallen on hard times? How about cut their benefits? Benefits are meant to go up with inflation. CPI.…
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Labour's Darien Fenton is a gutsy, tireless advocate for working Kiwis. She was left gobsmacked yesterday by the Maori Party's decision to vote for the weakening of Kiwis' rights to work breaks. The law enshrining the right to these breaks was one of the last…
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Jarbury at Auckland Transport Blog wrote this excellent post. Reproduced with permission. The graph below shows a comparison between the world's likely demand for liquid fuels (including oil) over the next 20 years (the blue line) and the various components that will make up the…
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It's fantastic to see Labour's Clare Curran working on an Open Government policy as a major plank for the next election. I'm pretty sure that it's something various authors here have suggested over the last year and a bit - great minds, eh? And taking…
accountability activism community democracy democratic participation labour
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Cabinet celebrates the ECan coup Live in Canterbury? Value democracy? What are you doing today after work? Come to the ECan protest: 5:30 pm @ ECan office 58 Kilmore St, moving to the Jenny Shipley gloat-fest lecture at the Copthorne Hotel, corner Durham and Kilmore…
capitalism Conservation democracy under attack farming local government
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Open mike is your post. It's open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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After attacking solo mothers Jennifer Johnston and Natasha Fuller by releasing their private financial details back in July last year Paula Bennett spoke with Johnston and, somewhat oddly, received an apology form her. At the time I thought the sudden turnaround was a bit fishy.…
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Here's a great interview by RNZ's Kathryn Ryan with Professor Doug Sellman, Director of the National Addiction Centre, on Government's bizarre inconsistency in raising the price of fags to discourage consumption while not raising the price of alcohol - despite its alleged interest in addressing alcohol…
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The choices between Labour and National are becoming clearer by the day. No Right Turn has a post summing up, but the list could do with some tweaking and expanding. Labour is committed to: Retaining the top tax rate, and restoring it if National lowers…
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Last week, we heard the Maori Party endlessly praising National for the DRIP. Yesterday, we got deathly silence as Trevor Mallard, with the help of a PPTA OIA request, revealed that the Government is giving whare kura schools only $50,000 in base operating funding compared…
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This post reproduced with permission from No Right Turn. The government announced a package of measures for the aquaculture industry this afternoon - including a power for Ministers "to amend regional coastal plans in exceptional circumstances where it is in significant regional or national interest".…
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I'm not against rising the excise on tobacco but everyone knows that if this government was serious about reducing the harm from tobacco this isn't the best way to go about it. Addicts have what an economist would call 'inelastic' demand for tobacco, it doesn't…
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"The constantly shifting sands of pragmatism". That how's John Armstrong describes National's plan for governing this country as Nick Smith indicates that a further gutting of the already too weak Emissions Trading Scheme is on the cards. I call it a predictable pay off for…
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Mr Brownlee, I have to confess, you've got me scratching my head. In Parliament yesterday, you pulled a strange defence of the government's policy of opening specially protected lands to mining: the member may be interested to know that in policy 10.8(b) of that document…
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Open mike is your post. It's open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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The Nats are getting ready to cut 20 Hours Free Early Childhood Education, after having promised during the election campaign not only to keep it but extend it. Given the opportunity during Question Time to restate National's 2008 promise to " retain all the existing…
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Ken Perrott wrote this post at Open Parachute a week ago. Reproduced with permission. Apparently climate scientist Michael Mann has threatened legal action* against Minnesotans for Global Warming (M4GW) over their video 'Hide the Decline.' This used the comment from the 'climategate' emails to portray…
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As recently discussed, sovereign debt may well be the next crisis point in the world's unstable financial system. In breaking news, things aren't looking too rosy right now: Standard & Poor's downgrade Greek credit rating to junk status Fears that financial crisis may spread to…
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Not content with raising the cost of living through a GST increase, the Nats are clearly planning another blow to young families. On RNZ this morning: The Finance Minister says the Government is moving to contain the cost of early childhood education, with details to…
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Last month, the Government rushed through legislation in a single day to abolish the democratically-elected Canterbury Regional Council known as Environment Canterbury. This was the first time in history a regional council had been involuntarily abolished and not only were the current elected officials booted…
accountability assets Conservation democracy under attack democratic participation labour local body elections national science
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Looks like the government is rapidly backing away from recommendations to crack down on alcohol despite it causing more social costs than any other drug. Personally I take a liberal view on drugs of all kinds including alcohol (especially single malts) but I suspect that…
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Open mike is your post. It's open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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He's been burning hot and cold the last few weeks, and the last few days have been hot. Fresh from promising to restore the top tax rate that National is set to abolish and give the revenue to the poor, Phil Goff has outlined Labour's vision…
accountability assets auckland supercity democracy under attack democratic participation phil goff referendum
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Forest and Bird has revealed more secrets and lies from National as Gerry Brownlee and co continue their mad, illogical rush to open up specially protected land to mining. On March 22, Brownlee announced the Government's mining discussion document. It includes opening up parts of…
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John 'Mayor for Remuera' Banks has put out a statement saying he is 1.4% ahead of Manukau Mayor Len Brown in a head-to-head poll. Ummm. Gosh. In a realisation that this is no kind of result, weirdly, he tries to trumpet a 5.1% lead in…
auckland supercity john banks len brown local body elections
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There's no doubt that John Key is a very popular politician. One of the reasons is that he likes to tell the audience what they want to hear. Unfortunately this makes him all too happy to say different things to different audiences -- John Key…
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Open mike is your post. It's open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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To paraphrase Muldoon - send a JAFA to Wellington, and we can only increase the average intelligence of both parts of the country. Needless to say, TV news chose to focus on a minor story in Goffs speech. If a future mayor of Auckland, Brown,…
act auckland supercity democracy under attack Media phil goff privatisation public services rodney hide roger douglas tv vote smart