If I were Labour’s campaign strategist
Part three of the ‘If I were [Party X]’s campaign strategist’ series brings us to Labour. The strategy for a major party is […]
Steve Pierson
John Key’s DVD: Take 2
Our sources tell us National is set to follow-up to last year’s DVD ‘John Key: Vacuous for New Zealand’ with its sequel ‘John […]
“Frankly, it’s a market”
That’s what Key said when asked about his plan to increase GP fees. A reader reckons Key’s planning to apply the same market […]
Hiding from the hakapiks
There is a Novotel hotel beside the Canadian High Commission on The Terrace in Wellington. Check out this billboard on the wall of […]
Ng on fact-free politics
Keith Ng of Public Address has a long-standing commitment to improving the quality of journalism in this country. Now, he is proposing a […]
Wayne Mapp’s Dukakis moment
Following the first incident of a New Zealand vehicle being attacked by an improvised mine, National’s Defence Spokesman Wayne Mapp has attacked the […]
Crime continues to fall
The latest Police statistics show crime is still dropping. Crime dropped from 1013 offences per 10,000 people in 2006 to 1008 in 2007. […]
April 1 changes boost wages and cut taxes
Today is a big day for government policy affecting Kiwis’ incomes: The minimum wage is now $12 an hour, up from $7 when […]
The parties’ climate change policies
‘Tis the season for surveys of the parties. Greenpeace sent a questionnaire to each of the parliamentary parties asking for their polices on […]
National’s victims policy
National has proposed several initiatives around victims’ rights, most of which are based on policy already under development by the Ministry of Justice. […]
What’s up, Doc?
There have been a number of stories recently about the number of doctors heading overseas but they are usually sensationalist and lack context. […]
The Kingmaker Debate
TV7’s Kingmaker debate was an opportunity for the leaders of the smaller parties to promote themselves without being overshadowed by Clark and Key. […]
National’s tax cut dilemma
If National are so keen to cut taxes and so critical of the Government for not doing so earlier, why are they being […]
If I were the Greens’ campaign strategist
This should be the Greens’ time in the sun. For decades, the Green movement has been concerned about the future impacts of climate […]
Canada’s shame
For those of you who saw the title and thought this post was about Celine Dion, sorry, it’s about the seal cull. Every […]
Calling coal to account
New Zealand’s coal industry is a mess of contradictions. We worry about carbon emissions and Kyoto while State-owned Solid Energy exports coal to dirty Chinese […]
The 50 cent tax cut
This morning on Breakfast, John Key repeated his line that capping the size of the core public service (that includes planning staff for health, […]
Kiwisaver breaks half a million
Congratulations to Kiwisaver’s 500,000th member, baby Remy Van Cruysen, whose parents, Jules and Megan, signed him up today. By the time Remy is an […]
Policy Summary: Labour v National
The Sunday-Star Times has an interesting list of the policies the election will be fought on and where the two major parties stand on them. Here’s […]
It’s your fault I keep saying contradictory things
Regular readers will remember that one of John Key’s excuses for he ‘we would love to see wages drop‘ quote was that the […]
John’s quick act sets up another flip
Two days ago we ran a piece called ‘If I were ACT’s campaign strategist‘ which suggested ‘ACT needs to lay claim to the […]
Five years of hell
It is five years since the US and allies invaded Iraq, and the war is far from over. Every day, there is fighting […]
Obama vs Key
With Barack Obama doing so well in the Democrat primaries and being seen as the candidate of change, National wants to paint John […]
Nats talk up crime, policy absent
As part of its ‘New Zealand sucks’ campaign, National is on its high horse over an international survey that shows New Zealand’s crime […]
If I were ACT’s campaign strategist
What strategy should the parties pursue ahead of the election? This series of posts will attempt to answer that question, party by party, starting with […]
What the hell is the sub-prime crisis?
The sub-prime crisis is at the heart of the world’s current economic problems. It all boils down to financiers playing fast and loose […]
Counting our collective coin
Check out this groovy little gadget. You put your money in the slot and it gets counted, with the power of ‘digital’! Maybe […]
They know their man
This week’s NBR editorial, titled “Smarten up, John Key”, frets that Key keeps showing himself to be a slippery, policy lightweight (can’t have […]
Focus on suicide
The Government has launched a new suicide prevention action plan. Suicide is a tragedy that has touched several Ministers personally and it is […]
The Hawke’s Bay DHB report
The report into the Hawke’s Bay DHB is out and, like everything to do with DHBs, it makes boring reading. That tireless muck-raker, […]
Reacting to the Tibet unrest
The clashes between rioters and police in Tibet that have left up to 100 dead are a particularly tough issue for New Zealand […]
A modest proposal
Every year the Remuneration Authority, an independent body, reviews the pay of MPs. It sets the salaries without needing approval by Parliament or Cabinet, to keep […]
National’s bad fortnight
A bad week last week from John Key got worse this week as other National MPs joined Key in a game of drop […]
Adapting to the oil endgame
Today oil broke US$111 a barrel. Two weeks ago the record price was $101. Just six months ago the price broke $80 for […]
Journalists react to attack on media freedom
Yesterday in Parliament, Winston Peters tabled a letter of protest from the Herald journalists’ chapel to APN chief executive Martin Simons. The letter […]
Canadian Pension Fund’s asset-strip plan
The Canadian Pension Fund is planning to asset-strip Auckland Airport. Once they have control they would demand ‘hyper-dividends’ three times the size of […]