The Standard

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Government makes Move On Orders Bill less shit

Written By: - Date published: 9:56 am, September 6th, 2026 - 4 comments

This week the Government reluctantly reversed its intent to allow homeless teenagers to be prosecuted if they did not move to somewhere less safe when required to move on by police.

Who is to blame for Air New Zealand’s latest result?

Written By: - Date published: 4:25 pm, September 1st, 2026 - 22 comments

Christopher Luxon has asked Air New Zealand to explain what caused its recently announced significant loss. The answer appears to be a decision made by Air New Zealand while he was Chief Executive.

The Government suddenly wants to limit the damage it has caused to our climate response

Written By: - Date published: 8:46 am, August 30th, 2026 - 24 comments

After spending all term undermining the Country’s climate change response the Government now wants to improve the country’s ability to meet the Country’s Paris Accord obligations.

Elon Musk would be pleased with Opportunity Party’s Data Centre policy

Written By: - Date published: 7:39 pm, August 22nd, 2026 - 69 comments

The Opportunities Party wishes to enrich Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos and Larry Ellison by giving them tax breaks to establish data centres in Aotearoa.

Homelessness kills

Written By: - Date published: 9:39 am, August 21st, 2026 - 16 comments

Very sad recent news from yesterday. Three homeless people in Aotearoa, the land of plenty, have recently frozen to death.

Vote Climate

Written By: - Date published: 7:50 pm, August 16th, 2026 - 9 comments

When voting this year vote Climate.

Naidoo deserves an apology

Written By: - Date published: 10:07 am, August 16th, 2026 - 15 comments

A late police response to an OIA request concerning Labour List candidate Rakesh Naidoo raises concerns that the Police are acting politically.

Winning the battle but losing the war

Written By: - Date published: 10:56 am, August 13th, 2026 - 48 comments

Christopher Luxon may have kept the National Party leadership yesterday but National’s chances in this year’s election just became much worse.

Will he stay or will he go?

Written By: - Date published: 7:44 am, August 12th, 2026 - 77 comments

Christopher Luxon’s decision to call a National Caucus meeting this morning to vote on his leadership may result in him being forced to walk the plank.

Luxon, Yahoo and Numpty

Written By: - Date published: 2:19 pm, August 7th, 2026 - 3 comments

Christopher Luxon completed a week from Hell by calling his coleaders Yahoo and Numpty and obliterating Media coverage of the announcement of the opening of Auckland’s City Rail Tunnel and of new industry designed school subjects.

Uber Air Force One

Written By: - Date published: 10:28 am, August 6th, 2026 - 26 comments

It has been disclosed that Christopher Luxon used an Air Force plane to fly him from a National Party fundraiser in Whanganui to his home in Auckland.

Luxon’s biggest problem is Luxon

Written By: - Date published: 10:40 am, August 4th, 2026 - 25 comments

As we enter the home strait for the 2026 election National strategists must be thinking “what the f*(k do we do from here”? Because Christopher Luxon’s complete indifference to the difficulties businesses are facing and his inability to control Winston Peters are harming National’s reelection prospects big time.

TOP proposes cuts to Public Service that Act would be proud of

Written By: - Date published: 6:21 pm, August 1st, 2026 - 139 comments

The Opportunity Party has a hidden objective. They want to make huge cuts to the Public Service that even Act would look at and think “that is brave”. And they have been less than open about the cuts.

Aotearoa’s very own Donald Trump

Written By: - Date published: 1:11 pm, July 31st, 2026 - 37 comments

New Zealand First is peddling nonsense law changes straight out of the Donald Trump playbook. And engaging in obnoxious racist behaviour. And Christopher Luxon does not have the ability to stop them or control them.

Stuart Gnash

Written By: - Date published: 9:33 am, July 23rd, 2026 - 29 comments

With the demise of Stuart Nash’s planned resumption of his political career the question has to be asked, did Stuart Nash leave NZ First or did NZ First leave Stuart Nash?

Jones should be sacked

Written By: - Date published: 11:13 am, July 21st, 2026 - 8 comments

Shane Jones underscored Christopher Luxon’s weakness by telling him publicly that he needed to “take off your kneepads” when receiving a visit from foreign leaders without repercussion.

Dead Cats everywhere

Written By: - Date published: 10:15 am, July 18th, 2026 - 28 comments

Winston Peters has engaged in classic dead cat political behaviour by publicly announcing that one of the new Interisland ferries will be called “Cook” and diverting the debate from the cost to the name.

Does Parliament really need more shock jocks?

Written By: - Date published: 7:02 pm, July 14th, 2026 - 13 comments

Michael Laws and Paul Henry are planning a return to Parliament. Laws as a potential New Zealand First MP and Henry as an Act MP. Does Parliament really need more shock jocks?

Latest poll – too close to call

Written By: - Date published: 9:41 am, July 14th, 2026 - 64 comments

The latest RNZ Reid Research Poll suggests that the chances of Christopher Luxon needing a new job after the next election are increasing.

Let’s celebrate Kiwi music

Written By: - Date published: 8:21 am, July 10th, 2026 - 18 comments

Something to do on Matariki Day, celebrate Te Ao Aotearoa. RNZ has invited people to vote and comment on the list of the 100 best Kiwi songs and the top 50 will be played today.

This Government’s war on the homeless and the young

Written By: - Date published: 11:32 am, July 3rd, 2026 - 10 comments

In a land of milk and honey you would think that every kiwi would have plenty to eat and somewhere to live. But this week has shown the Government wants to refuse emergency to some poor people and feed young children inadequate school lunches.

With friends like NZ First …

Written By: - Date published: 12:27 pm, June 27th, 2026 - 6 comments

This week Tama Potaka announced the Government will backtrack on a proposal that would have allowed for the sale of up to 60% of the country’s conservation land. But Shane Jones then completely undermined the announcement by talking about using Conservation land for mining.

National panics with Kiwisaver announcement as polling crashes

Written By: - Date published: 3:52 pm, June 24th, 2026 - 21 comments

National’s recent Kiwisaver announcement, expected to cost $110 million a year, only pays back some of the savings from its erlier Kiwisaver cuts expected to save $610 million a year, and appears to be signs ofincreasing panic.

The trouble with AI

Written By: - Date published: 11:50 am, June 21st, 2026 - 21 comments

Is AI the great savoiur for our civilisation? Or a fast track to environmental, social and economic devasation?

The Alarming Echos between Trump and Luxon on elections

Written By: - Date published: 12:04 pm, June 17th, 2026 - 10 comments

In the United States and in New Zealand the current administrations wish to speed up the finalisation of election results by supressing the right to vote.

National panics

Written By: - Date published: 8:58 am, June 15th, 2026 - 16 comments

It is strange for a party in power finishing its first term to call a media event on a Sunday just so it can attack the opposition. But this is what happened yesterday.

Which side is TOP on?

Written By: - Date published: 10:55 am, June 14th, 2026 - 159 comments

The Opportunity Party which has a suite of progressive policies thinks that it can work with National, even though National’s priorities should be an anathema to it.

National intends to proceed with the LNG terminal and welch on the country’s Kyoto Protocol obligations

Written By: - Date published: 10:19 am, June 12th, 2026 - 12 comments

National, a party of supposed economic geniuses, will spend billions on an LNG terminal that is not needed, billions on roads of National significance whose business cases are appalling, and attack Labour for a policy that is cheap, will help ordinary people, reduce fuel dependancy and greenhouse gas emissions.

Labour’s list

Written By: - Date published: 12:10 pm, June 10th, 2026 - 44 comments

Labour’s recently announced list contains a number of new impressive candidates and is clear evidence that the party is being rejuvinated.

When is a Free Speech Union not a Free Speech Union?

Written By: - Date published: 11:54 am, June 4th, 2026 - 117 comments

When it is a right wing astroturfing front.

No nukes

Written By: - Date published: 9:37 am, June 1st, 2026 - 30 comments

The timing of the recent suggestion by Chris Penk that New Zealand should review its nuclear free policy makes you wonder if the Trump Administration has applied pressure to do so.