Posts on the economy, work, business, income, and labour
Written By: - Date published: 11:46 am, February 21st, 2014 - 104 comments
Popular songs can capture the heartbeat of communities. “Rock Star” economy”? Or “No Depression in New Zealand”? A song that links the NZ of Muldoon & John Key. “History Never Repeats”? Who has pulled up the ladder & who wants to replace ladders with something more accessible to all?
Written By: - Date published: 2:56 pm, February 20th, 2014 - 227 comments
National is now targeting David Cunliffe and his family. Metiria Turei was attacked for living in a castle and wearing designer jackets, and now David Cunliffe is being attacked for being wealthy. The criticisms miss the point. There is nothing inherently wrong with being wealthy. But there is everything wrong in setting fire to the ladder of social support after you have had the opportunity to climb it.
Written By: - Date published: 9:41 am, February 20th, 2014 - 42 comments
Tracey recounts the rise and fall of the `financial genius` John Key’s pet financial hub for NZ to emulate the paragon economies that tried it. Like Ireland – the home of the jobless and deserted housing projects.
Fortunately he was somehow prevented from stuffing NZ in this way. However he did put in some legislation of dubious value to allow NZ to be used as a haven for hot money fleeing taxes…
Written By: - Date published: 7:42 pm, February 19th, 2014 - 7 comments
Readers of The Standard have read and engaged on the campaign for forestry safety. There is now a Review underway and we need to maintain the organising momentum to ensure change is made. On 28 April is International Workers Memorial Day and we have invited the families of all workers killed since 2008 (that we have […]
Written By: - Date published: 3:48 pm, February 19th, 2014 - 21 comments
John Key makes up the figures during a session of parliament for the expected unemployment in coming years when he took office. The apparent reason is to make his governments piss-poor performance running the economy look better. Of course there is that problem that Rob Salmond can link to the December 2008 projections from the Treasury which show John Key to be lying (yet again).
Written By: - Date published: 10:26 am, February 19th, 2014 - 81 comments
The documentary ‘Mind the Gap’ and an interview with a UNICEF advocacy manager focus on poverty and inequality. Zombie “neoliberal” policies have increased poverty & inequality, damaging the futures of too many children. We will all benefit from good government policies underpinned by a commitment to collective approaches and responsibility.
Written By: - Date published: 4:00 pm, February 18th, 2014 - 28 comments
Local Bodies looks at some (very cool) solar installations and the Greens solar policy. We are now seeing a stark contrast between a Government desperate to support the status quo of increasing charges and large company profits, while the future focussed Greens are truly progressive in their thinking.
Written By: - Date published: 2:48 pm, February 18th, 2014 - 80 comments
There has been some discussion recently about whether we should tax fizzy drinks as a threat to public health. Otago University public health people say yes. Various anti-tax groups say no. Here’s Rob Salmond’s 2c worth.
Some interesting arguments
Written By: - Date published: 12:05 pm, February 14th, 2014 - 79 comments
Not the bright young man who has to be paid a million dollars to come to work. The new broom, who fixes what ain’t broke, cost cuts, asset strips, takes his share options, and leaves.
Just what schools need. More of this approach.
Written By: - Date published: 10:54 am, February 13th, 2014 - 42 comments
The Salvation Army’s latest State of the Nation Report is damning on child poverty & unaffordable housing. The government is misrepresenting the conclusions, reversing the main focus on failings, and focusing on the positives: the spin is repeated in an NZ Herald editorial.
Written By: - Date published: 10:43 am, February 13th, 2014 - 62 comments
Dave Hansford contrasts the way that France handles its usage of waterways by farmers with the unsustainable degradation of NZ farmers. For that matter with the way that farming in the France is targeted at high value rather than commodity factory farming. Let’s have the really tough conversation: is a low-value, mass-market business model really the best we can do? Are cheap, anonymous, industrial commodities our finest work? And are they worth the hidden cost to farmers, taxpayers and the environment?
Written By: - Date published: 5:38 pm, February 11th, 2014 - 11 comments
An interesting article by Colin James in today’s ODT on the living wage proposals and how lifting may have wider economic benefits. Whether one agrees with him or not, he is widely read, independent, well-connected and what I like most always thoughtful and forward-looking. I miss him from the DomPost.
Written By: - Date published: 11:08 am, February 11th, 2014 - 14 comments
There’s been an excellent Insight on Radio NZ on Sunday / Monday, looking at the income gap and the consequences for our society – the loss of social mobility, the loss of health (mental & physical) for all, the increased incarceration, drug use etc etc. There’s also been recently PBS coverage in the US, […]
Written By: - Date published: 10:56 am, February 11th, 2014 - 46 comments
Governments are holding on to their traditional roles and functions, but the world has changed. We need something else.
Written By: - Date published: 1:24 pm, February 10th, 2014 - 7 comments
Something that doesn’t seem to have hit the newspapers here, but may turn out to have been significantly affecting little ol’ NZ is a growing forex scandal, mainly in the UK (as the centre of forex trading). The boss of the UK’s financial regulator has said the the allegations of rate-fixing are “every bit as […]
Written By: - Date published: 9:30 am, February 9th, 2014 - 238 comments
Damien Grant has argued in the latest Herald that those convicted of tax evasion should be treated more leniently than those convicted of beneficiary fraud even though an average tax fraud case resulting in jail may involve eleven times as much money. Obviously wealthy people are somehow better …
Written By: - Date published: 1:53 pm, February 8th, 2014 - 35 comments
After David Cunliffe’s state of the nation speech at the end of January, the spotlight was, appropriately, on the big policy announcement he made: the Best Start package for Kiwi kids. (It wasn’t the friendliest spotlight, unfortunately.) But there was a sentence at the end which hasn’t had a lot of pickup, and which could […]
Written By: - Date published: 9:00 am, February 8th, 2014 - 39 comments
John Key has welcomed Tony Abbott’s confirmation that Australia would extend access to students under the Higher Education Loan Program to long-term New Zealand residents in Australia. But this policy was announced eight months ago.
Written By: - Date published: 10:50 am, February 7th, 2014 - 146 comments
The NZ Herald has a long history of opposing Maori resistance and supporting colonisation. It has always been right wing with a strong commercial focus & MO. Yesterday it censored news of Waitangi Day protests. Today an editorial spins in slippery style, for the Govt’s failing PowerCo sales.
Written By: - Date published: 12:21 pm, February 6th, 2014 - 30 comments
Economist Dr Geoff Bertram will analyse prospects for the single-buyer model for electricity on Tuesday 11 February in Wellington. Bertram has come under personal attack from the Electricity Authority for his analysis of price rises for power consumers. Fairfax analyst Chalkie calls the Authority’s report a “clever fallacious and deceptive.. politically led effort to discredit the Labour/Green single buyer policy.” Extraordinary. All welcome – register with the Fabians.
Written By: - Date published: 3:17 pm, February 5th, 2014 - 47 comments
Charles Waldegrave has slammed Brian Scott’s critique of the method used to calculate the Living Wage in New Zealand. He shows Scott’s critique, and that of the Treasury, lack an informed understanding of the definition of a living wage and confuse market wage rates and welfare transfers. The living wage level was set at $18.40 per hour in February 2013. Scott’s paper has been given prominence on Kiwiblog 3 January 2014
Written By: - Date published: 6:06 pm, February 4th, 2014 - 37 comments
Roy Morgan survey reports New Zealand under-employment – those working part-time but looking for more work – has jumped to a record high 11.3% (up 2.7%). Simon Bridges’ policies to create precarious employment seem to be working.
Written By: - Date published: 2:34 pm, February 4th, 2014 - 56 comments
Anadarko fails to find commercially viable oil in Taranaki, and is now moving on to waste even more time, money and resources in the Canterbury basin. This is a big fail for John Key’s casino capitalist, speculative economic policy. And a fail for NZ’s people and environment. [update: Hikoi]
Written By: - Date published: 10:05 am, February 3rd, 2014 - 20 comments
A draft UN report on human rights shows NZ has been slacking off. The government is glossing over its failings: eg on domestic violence, child protection, poverty, ethnic inequalities, discrimination, disability rights, government abuse of urgency. Collins focuses on punishment, surveillance.
Written By: - Date published: 6:12 pm, February 1st, 2014 - 121 comments
John Key says that the Greens make personal attacks: calling for ministers to be sacked. This is hardly a diversionary personal attack unlike the nastiest of Key’s cheap point scoring . The Greens “go hard” in focusing on relevant issues: public transport, environment, poverty & inequality gap.
Written By: - Date published: 8:21 pm, January 31st, 2014 - 46 comments
One handwritten poster by a student in South Korea, asking “How are you all doing?” has started a poster movement where people doing it tough talk truth to power. Campbell Live featured a woman writing to John Key about her struggles on low pay.
Written By: - Date published: 10:01 am, January 30th, 2014 - 56 comments
The ratings/sales driven ethos of the corporate MSM skews the coverage of the election campaigns of parties of the “left” and the “right”. Focus on individuals, implying they represent large sections of the population. The left are leading the agenda on inequality.
Written By: - Date published: 6:26 pm, January 29th, 2014 - 18 comments
Minister of Labour Simon Bridges today said he welcomed the Review of Forestry Safety and that he has asked Worksafe NZ to review the Approved Code of Practice (ACOP) into the forestry sector to “clarify them”. Chris Finlayson was the Minister when the current regulations (ACOP) were signed off new in December 2012. He said […]
Written By: - Date published: 6:11 pm, January 29th, 2014 - 25 comments
This post isn’t a ‘contrast and compare’ piece on the policy announcements of National, the Greens and Labour. Enough to say that National are pursuing privatisation while both Labour and Green are at least trying to do good things.
Shame about the reality of the bigger picture then.
Written By: - Date published: 9:15 am, January 29th, 2014 - 23 comments
1919-2014: Gone but never forgotten. Songs for and of the people.
Written By: - Date published: 8:49 pm, January 28th, 2014 - 18 comments
The PMs’ statement todaywas a bit of a fizzer: lacking ideas, a lot of waffle. Some opposition speeches were more inspiring, & laid out some real alternatives: like the speeches from Cunliffe (on fire), Norman (inspiring), Ardern (animated) & Harawira (real people; real struggles).
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