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democracy under attack

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Little: Labour to Defy TPPA

Written By: - Date published: 8:58 am, January 8th, 2016 - 717 comments

Labour Leader Andrew Little has announced that the next Labour led Government will defy the TPPA’s attack on our sovereignty. Good on Labour – that’s the leadership we need.

What was National’s role in the police raid on Nicky Hager?

Written By: - Date published: 8:35 am, December 18th, 2015 - 130 comments

Justice Clifford’s decision that the police raid of Nicky Hager’s home was illegal raises serious questions about what political pressure was applied on the police.

Protection of National Security Information

Written By: - Date published: 8:48 am, December 15th, 2015 - 10 comments

At the heart of the project is the tension between national interests and individual rights. Questions about how to balance these interests are not new, but they have been brought into sharp focus by recent international events.

Jarrod Gilbert 1 – Windmills 0

Written By: - Date published: 7:09 am, November 29th, 2015 - 22 comments

About time the Police got around to becoming a “very evidence based” service. Building great relationships with academia is a sensible way to start.

Towards banana republic status

Written By: - Date published: 9:30 am, November 19th, 2015 - 43 comments

National has passed legislation with retrospective effect under urgency to change previous legislation also passed under urgency so that the law says what it thinks the law should have said, despite the existing law being abundantly clear.

Death throes of journalism at TV3

Written By: - Date published: 12:15 pm, November 16th, 2015 - 56 comments

Spinoff has the story.

A Government of spin redux

Written By: - Date published: 10:40 am, November 16th, 2015 - 26 comments

The Herald has withdrawn a story that reported on Government pressure on the ERO to rewrite a report after what appears to be pressure from the Government to do so.

Scoop’s second Hager document release

Written By: - Date published: 10:25 am, November 15th, 2015 - 98 comments

Scoop has released a second collection of documents from the Hager v Attorney General case.  Among them is comment by a former Police Commissioner expressing surprise at the amount of resources put into the case and the involvement of a senior member of the Police Executive.

TPPA national day of action

Written By: - Date published: 8:00 am, November 13th, 2015 - 26 comments

Saturday November 14 is a national day of action against the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement.  Details of all protests are set out in the post.

EPA to be gutted – for doing its job

Written By: - Date published: 10:40 am, November 12th, 2015 - 24 comments

Looks like National is planning to take over the Environmental Protection Agency.

There is Hope.

Written By: - Date published: 9:00 am, November 10th, 2015 - 65 comments

Anarchism, past and present.

Portugal

Written By: - Date published: 12:15 pm, October 27th, 2015 - 38 comments

This is going to end well…

NRT: Dictatorship in Canterbury, dictatorship in Parliament

Written By: - Date published: 9:21 am, October 14th, 2015 - 9 comments

I/S at No Right Turn writes on the continued suspension of democracy in Canterbury.

Congratulations Jane Kelsey

Written By: - Date published: 12:39 pm, October 13th, 2015 - 61 comments

The High Court has upheld Jane Kelsey’s application for a declaration that the Government and Tim Groser improperly considered her application for information concerning the TPPA negotiations.

Bugger the Truth – Getting elected means fooling the poeple

Written By: - Date published: 1:15 pm, September 19th, 2015 - 34 comments

So, its is not that the voters are idiots, as some suggest the Left are claiming, it is that the Right deliberately lie and mislead to get a vote, on false pretenses. It is the Right who constantly treats voters as gullible idiots, And a media, strangled by shrinking budgets and reduced personnel with less and less time to research rather than regurgitate. Couple that with an increase in non-journalists hogging the space set aside for reporting and elucidating news events… what chance the voter?

All the left wants is a clean contest of ideas

Written By: - Date published: 8:56 am, September 15th, 2015 - 153 comments

Josie Pagani yesterday chose as a left wing commentator to condemn Jeremy Corbyn’s politics as being based on narcissism where hard decisions never need to be made, and the unpopularity of a policy was evidence not of its failure but of its virtue.  She should have analysed his history before making these claims.  And in the interests of balance the media really needs to choose left wing commentators who will proudly stand up and support progressive ideals rather than repeat right wing attack lines.

Inside National’s spin machine

Written By: - Date published: 10:32 am, September 11th, 2015 - 81 comments

A very interesting post in The Herald yesterday by Grant McLachlan (former Parliamentary researcher and a Nat campaign director) detailing National’s well resourced and well organised spin machine.

Nats losing it on the TPP

Written By: - Date published: 7:02 am, August 27th, 2015 - 73 comments

National are trying to evade even the simplest questions on the TPP – because the truth is profoundly undemocratic. As usual Groser and Key turn to insults instead of engaging with people’s legitimate concerns.

National Ltd™’s Shane Reti Caught Out In Another Lie

Written By: - Date published: 7:12 am, August 26th, 2015 - 32 comments

Shane Reti lied about the process of ratifying the TPP. In a Press Release to the Northern Advocate, Reti states “. . . the agreement comes before parliament and opposition parties and select committees for debate and modifications . . .”

Most allegations against Julian Assange dropped

Written By: - Date published: 6:39 pm, August 18th, 2015 - 94 comments

Most of the allegations against Assange have been dropped but Swedish authorities still refuse to question him in London. And Assange still hasn’t been charged with a single crime.

#Talleyban. Standard Exclusive: MWU Blacklisted by Boss

Written By: - Date published: 10:07 am, August 10th, 2015 - 83 comments

Talleys has de-recognised the Meat Workers Union and refused to bargain with them. They have told the workers to set up a new, yellow union. Or else. Brighter Future? Not under National. This is what the recent changes in employment law were intended to achieve. It’s union busting in a brutal, thuggish form.

American oligarchy

Written By: - Date published: 10:14 am, August 5th, 2015 - 37 comments

american-oligarchy

John Key – Snake Oil Salesman

Written By: - Date published: 12:33 pm, July 30th, 2015 - 42 comments

John Key has tried to suggest that we have nothing to worry about planned changes to Pharmac caused by TPP.  But a recent further release by Wikileaks on the effects of the Trans Pacific Partnership on State Owned Enterprises makes you wonder if the implications of TPP on Pharmac are as limited as he says.

Then they came for the Health Boards

Written By: - Date published: 8:26 am, July 27th, 2015 - 79 comments

It appears that the Government has a radical proposal to undermine democratic participation in our Health Boards.  Although the Minister claims not to know about it.

National’s law ruled a violation of human rights

Written By: - Date published: 7:48 am, July 25th, 2015 - 16 comments

The High Court has ruled that a law passed by National in 2010 is a violation of the Bill of Rights Act. This is a first for NZ, and another “proud” item to add to National’s legacy.

The Fighting Foreign Corporate Control Bill

Written By: - Date published: 8:16 am, July 22nd, 2015 - 49 comments

With support from Labour, the Greens and the Maori Party NZ First is promoting the Fighting Foreign Corporate Control Bill. The support of one more MP will be sufficient to sent the Bill to select committee for consideration.

Hager v Attorney General & Dirty Politics

Written By: - Date published: 11:02 am, July 13th, 2015 - 49 comments

Nicky Hager’s case against the Police is being heard in the Wellington High Court today.  Jon Stephenson is live blogging (slightly delayed) proceedings and will tweet developments to #HagerCase.

NRT: No democracy for Canterbury

Written By: - Date published: 9:14 am, July 9th, 2015 - 8 comments

I/S at No Right Turn on the continued suspension of democracy in Canterbury, and the Nats’ dump of their proposed “transition plan” under cover of the ABvSamoa game yesterday.

Open letter on Nauru

Written By: - Date published: 2:03 pm, July 2nd, 2015 - 8 comments

Twenty eight legal academics have written an open letter to Murray McCully expressing their concern at the worsening rule of law situation in Nauru.

The Cyber bullying law and Dirty Politics

Written By: - Date published: 1:58 pm, July 1st, 2015 - 36 comments

The cyber bullying legislation is a cynical piece of law which allows National to claim that it has left dirty politics behind.

An open letter to Andrew Little

Written By: - Date published: 6:08 pm, June 26th, 2015 - 433 comments

A respectful open letter to Andrew Little with suggestions for how to win the next election!