NRT: Insanity
I/S at No Right Turn on the insanity of scrapping the home insulation programme.
Economy
Posts on the economy, work, business, income, and labour
Key sends more Kiwi jobs to Aussie
So much for all this propaganda about the asset sales being all about deepening markets here and giving Kiwis a chance to invest. When it came to building the website for the pre-registration, where did the Nats go? To Aussie. They got an Aussie company to build the site, saying Kiwi companies weren’t up to it. Cause, you know, the site is soooo secure and all.
Has John Key jumped the shark?
Micky savage of Waitakere News looks at John Key’s involvement in the Solid Energy fiasco. National’s undeserved reputation as sound economic managers takes another hit…
Akl Unitary Plan: the good, the bad & the debatable
The Draft Auckland Unitary Plan has much to commend it. It focuses on resource management, responds to the reality of climate change & aims for a more dense but ‘liveable’ city. It has weaknesses, embraces destructive “growth” and raises questions: e.g. about affordable housing & environmental management.
The manufacturing crisis & the Right’s wilful blindness
You would have thought that, less than 24 hours after another 185 manufacturing jobs were lost, the Right might be keeping their head down when it comes to the crisis in manufacturing. But no. Farrar’s popped up to cite a rinky-dink survey from Business NZ. The real surveys are very, very clear: 17,200 manufacturing jobs lost in the last year.
Mr Fucks It
In what is sure to be an interesting test of our amnesty, I want to point out that Steven Joyce is probably the most over-rated politician in living memory. The man has literally never achieved anything. He lost the unloseable election, his fossil fuels-centric economic policy is a predictable failure and he has completely failed on jobs.
Poverty Watch 23
Welcome to Poverty Watch, a weekly update on National’s lack of response to the urgent and growing issue of poverty in NZ. This week, seeds of hope – the P3 Foundation.
Dunne in
National are trying to blame their petty carpark tax on Peter Dunne, while he’s out of the country. Apparently his 1-vote is getting it through parliament by itself… (much like Charter Schools?). I doubt Dunne wants to die in a ditch for a petty carpark tax, so it’ll be good to see his response when he gets back.
Good employer
Bravo to TONZU, the first employers to sign up for the living wage for all its workers.
What if Winston…
What if Winston Peters holds the balance of power in 2014? Just a little something for potential Mighty River Power investors to consider…
Two Things
David Shearer won’t rule-out asset buy back (at cost), and a great blog post on “Climate Change: The New Normal”
Unionists Under the Bed
Forest Owners representative Sheldon Drummond suggested the union movement campaign around forestry safety was motivated by the “large un-unionised workforce” in forestry. In Sheldon’s mind this is clearly code for “bad motive”. Interviews with workers tell the story of their working lives, the long hours they are working and how safety issues are relegated when they are on the hill.. Fearing that if the article identifies them in any way there will be consequences – they are adamant that reprisal is a real risk. Sheldon sees none of this….
The big dry
We’re now experiencing the worst drought in the North Island in recorded history. It comes just five years after the previous severe drought and there was a lesser one in between. Let’s not beat around the bush, it’s climate change. Bill English came very close on Monday to admitting that climate change induced-droughts will make bailouts unsustainable.
Thinking too small
John Armstrong thinks poor Bill English has got it tough with the current drought and its impact on the budget. You’re thinking too small John. Way too small.
Shearer signed up for sale
On Morning Report this morning there was a clip of John Key (in Brazil) saying that David Shearer had signed up to buy […]
Mondayising win!
The Bill to Mondayise holidays seems certain to progress. A nice win for David Clark and for Labour, and an all too rare example of MMP working as it should.
In his own terms
So, John Key is heading back from yet another overly long ‘trade mission’ that seemed to involve little in the way of actual meetings and a lot in the way of trying on silly hats. His only act of note was somehow managing to snub our biggest export destination in the region at a sensitive time. But how well is the ‘wheeler and dealer’ doing, in his own terms?
Should the Left keep opposing asset sales?
Should the parties of the Left continue to oppose asset sales? Lew At Kiwipolitico (loudly cheered on by Bryce Edwards) doesn’t think so. I think Lew is wrong. Here’s why…
Banks sued over exceptional bank fees
New Zealand banks face a large class suit for over $1 billion in default fees over the past six years by three of NZ’s largest law firms in a case being announced today at 1pm. It is about time.
The economic value of the internet
The innovations that drive our modern economies changes and growth these days is largely powered by the internet. It is ubiquitously embedded in most businesses these days to a fantastic degree. While I wish economists well in their continuous attempts at measuring the effect of the internet, I think that it will be a futile endeavour.
The Brits are smarter than us
All sorts of bad polling news for the British Conservative government, as the Brits lose faith in the politics of economic austerity.
You pays your money & you takes your chances
Analysts are talking about risks of investing in Mighty River Power in the media today. Weather, electricity demand, overseas expansion. I’ll tell you what would make me think twice: everyone acknowledges the power companies over charge. Right now, the government has 400m reasons a year not to do anything about it. But that’s about to change.
Poverty Watch 22
Welcome to Poverty Watch, a weekly update on National’s lack of response to the urgent and growing issue of poverty in NZ. This week, our final look at the Children’s Social Health Monitor 2012 Update Report, and I’ll suggest some conclusions that can be drawn.
Recommended viewing
In 2002 a television crew from Ireland’s national broadcaster, RTÉ happened to be recording a documentary about Chávez when a coup was staged against him.
Highly recommended.
Fair trade
Farrar and Mallard want us to give the NZRU a statue to trade back one of Holyoake that the government accidentally sold them along with the old State Services building. How about saying to the NZRU, ‘We accidentally sold you a statue but, hey, you remember all that money we gave you to under-write your loss-making tournament? Maybe you could give us our fucken statue back without being dicks about it?
Spoiled brats running MRP
No surprise to find that Mighty River Power bosses are behaving like spoiled brats – that’s pretty much what they are.
ImperatorFish: Bennett announces drought relief get-tough measures
Will farmers be required to take mandatory drug tests, show evidence of looking for alternate sources of income and have their drought relief money docked if they fail to answer phone calls from Work and Income?
Auckland housing: Brown vs Smith
Nick Smith, of the forked tongue, is challenging Auckland council’s plan for affordable compact housing. It will do nothing for housing affordability, transport, the environment. It is undemocratic, over-rides the council, and will enrich developers.
We’re all beneficiaries now
The drought shows how important social protection systems are. When the unexpected happens – your farm dries up, you get sick, you lose your job, you find yourself alone raising your kids – the community steps in by way of tax funded Social Protection.
The Stealth Dismantling of Environmental Protection
To a first approximation the protection of the environment in this country is managed by two distinct entities; inside the Conservation estate it falls to […]
Chavez: 28 July 1954 – 5 March 2013
Chavez was too young to die, but he is a significant figure in South American politics. A controversial figure in Venezuela, the full story has yet to be written of his contribution to his country, his impact on the left & world politics.
Strategic blunder
Amidst the froth of predatory “excitement” about the sale of our power generation assets, it was refreshing to read in The Herald yesterday a single lone voice who was thinking long term.
TPPA: US, corporate dominance – let’s do ACTION!!
TTPA talks under way in Singapore. Jane Kelsey leads critical discussion in NZ: Obama skewing the agenda in favour of US corporates; pharmaceuticals, internet, copyright & more; John Key’s dodgy figures. In Aussie today, a seminar on the TPPA & corporate dominance over women’s rights & health provisions.
Mighty River is go!
Prepare for the government’s million dollar asset sales ad blitz…
What now for Sky TV?
News Corp is selling shares in NZ Sky TV. What does these mean for the on-going decline of public broadcasting? It is possibly part of the shift away from media moguls, and towards control of news media by bankers.