Can New Zealand’s Tech Sector Ride Adjustment Out?
Remember when New Zealand farming was a sunset industry and tech would rise in its place?
Economy
Posts on the economy, work, business, income, and labour
Diplomatic Values
Trudeau got a 10-minute stand-up with Xi followed by a public shirt-fronting, Albanese a 32-minute sit-down, and Jacinda Ardern a 50-minute formal bilateral. In the carefully calibrated world of the diplomatic dance-card, that says something. New Zealand would be foolish not to take advantage of what is on offer from China.
National’s Boot Camps announcement is deeply cynical policy recycling
There should be a law against the cynical recycling of dog whistle policies that everyone knows will not work. Last week’s announcement by National of a boot camp policy is as good an example as you can imagine.
Can We Prepare for 2023?
2023 is going to hit New Zealanders hard. Since the 2011 Christchurch earthquakes New Zealand has been beset by a new major crisis about once every two years. 2022 was our year off and get ready we are in for a strange and hard recession.
The power companies are rorting us
FIRST Union, NZCTU, and 350 Aotearoa have just released a joint report suggesting that the privatisation of our power companies by National were not only disastrous for the country’s finances but also disastrous for the planet.
Equality for the Black Ferns
After the epic Women’s World Cup result from last night’s final the question has to be asked, why aren’t the Black Ferns and the All Blacks paid the same amount?
Why Is Labour Such a Hard Sell Now?
So why is Labour and Ardern struggling when the economy is so strong?
Kelvin Davis – if not now then when?
The text of an excellent speech given by Kelvin Davis to the Labour Party conference on climate change.
Democracy is on the Ballot – watershed US midterms this week.
At a campaign event last week President Biden said that in these mid-term elections “democracy is on the ballot”. This is absolutely true, and the outcome will be decided by those who show up to vote.
National’s relentless negativity
National’s recent press releases show that its approach to politics will be relentlessly negative, with no idea of what it will do as an alternative or how it will fund changes.
In praise of Michael Hudson
82-year old polymath Michael Hudson is my favourite economist. He currently lectures in China to million-strong audiences. His latest book is The Destiny of Civilisation: Finance Capitalism, Industrial Capitalism or Socialism. His latest article is well worth a read.
Is it fair for the PM to get a weekly tax cut of $349 while a minimum wage worker would receive only $2.15?
Chris Luxon has avoided answering this question so far but he needs to be asked continuously about it. Is it fair that he as Prime Minister would receive under National’s proposed tax cuts a tax cut of $349 per week while a minimum wage worker would receive only $2.15 per week
Greens: proposal to tax excess corporate profits
“An excess profit tax would be a simple and effective way for large corporations to pay their fair share, unlocking the resources all of us need to live with dignity, put a roof over our heads and food on the table,” says Green Party Finance spokesperson, Julie Anne Genter.
“Today, we have released a discussion document exploring how an excess profit tax could be designed – and how the additional revenue should be spent. We are also considering the alternative of raising company tax rates so that all profits are taxed more.”
Fair Pay Agreements: Thank you Helen and thank you Michael
Yesterday was a big day for the Progressive movement in Aotearoa New Zealand as the Fair Pay Agreements Bill made its way through Parliament. Many should be thanked but especially Michael Wood and Helen Kelly.
Why won’t Labour help disabled people out of poverty?
The sheer waste of so many people’s talent, energy and lives is staggering. It doesn’t have to be that way. So why is it?
Labour day
Enjoying your weekend? Thank a unionist!
Wind Farms Need Mines
We need more mines if we are to transition to low carbon. There’s a field of industry that National and Labour could readily […]
How Brexit Shanked Britain
The political and economic disasters now unfolding in Britain are the responsibility of the Conservative Party from their 2016 Brexit vote through to now.
Minister Robertson, UK Pensions, and Risk
The political question is whether Kiwis currently losing money on paper can remember this: all investment involves risk and it’s entirely fair for our government to only manage so much of that risk and for the rest to fall on us the investor. Will irrational anxiety beat rational risk in our upcoming politics?
Even more anarchy in the UK
I never thought that I would write a post suggesting that Boris Johnson’s reign as UK Prime Minister was not so bad. But that is the state that we have reached as Liz Truss sacks Kwasi Kwarteng for implementing her policies. And polling suggests that if an election was held tomorrow the Tories could win as few as four seats.
Climate change: I think that we are f&*ked
This week the Government announced plans to bring in a scheme for pricing farming emissions in 2025. National’s response suggests the prospects of political consensus are non existent.
Sometimes in our quest for what is perfect we forget what has been achieved
A list of improvements in workers’ rights that Labour has been able to achieve since gaining power in 2017.
Local Body Election voting options: Taranaki Regional Council and Urs Signer
Urs Signer is standing for the Taranaki Regional Council, and is speaking a lot of sense about working with farmers, iwi and greenies for a Just Transition.
If Truss was the answer it is difficult to work out what the question was
Liz Truss has been UK Prime Minister for just over three weeks. Instead of enjoying a honeymoon in a short term she has crashed the UK economy and political support for her party and her days must be numbered.
Even more proof that Conservatives are not good economic managers
There has been this carefully crafted illusion that conservative politicians are somehow better with the finances than progressive politicians. Recent events in the United Kingdom suggest that this illusion is terribly misplaced.
The Very Bad Slightly Good Things About the Russian Invasion
The Russian invasion of the Ukraine has cost tens of thousands of people their lives, millions of people their homes, seriously disrupted billions of people, and increased the threat of nuclear war but there are positive developments coming from it.
Climate Commision Chair: it’s time to reform the “plant and pollute” Emissions Trading Scheme
This good news bodes well.
RIP KGD ONZ
Ken Douglas was a big man, in every sense of the word, and a great man, deeply involved in his community right through his life, from the Drivers’ Union to the Porirua City Council.
Who pays the cost of an extra day off?
The Government has announced that we will all have a day off to commemorate the life of Queen Elisabeth. Act has come out against it on the basis that we are in a cost of living crisis, even though the adverse effect on workers and the poor is essentially nil and even though there is analysis that suggests that holidays are good for the economy.
Re-Nationalise Electricity Generators Now
This COVID era is the decade in which the state is back, bigger and faster than ever before. But the one area this government won’t let the state expand again is the one area in which New Zealand is the most vulnerable: electricity generation. It needs to change.
Transition at the Limits of What People Can Cope With
Many European governments now face a perfect storm of threatened energy security, rising inflation, war-propelled refugee crisis, and climate objectives. New Zealand be warned.
About the reversed GST Kiwisaver changes
National’s attack on requiring banks to charge GST on the provision of Kiwisaver services the same as smaller services is deeply cynical when its attacks on Kiwisaver in the past are considered.
Sharma keeps digging
Last night a 4,761 word rant was published on Gaurav Sharma’s facebook page. In it he details information which on the face of it may have breached confidentiality requirements. And the overwhelming effect of the allegations is Meh.
Labour poised to resolve housing supply crisis
It is possible that within the next year New Zealand’s housing supply crisis will be resolved.
Will We Go Down With China?
Muchn’all as I try and stay positive about New Zealand’s economic direction, our reliance on China is getting much, much worse, and we need to move as China declines.
Labour’s “tenant tax” is neither a tax nor for tenants
National’s media spin team is at it again claiming that removing interest rate deductibility for landlords is a “tenant tax” when it is neither a new tax nor for tenants.