Posts on the economy, work, business, income, and labour
Written By: - Date published: 9:07 am, June 4th, 2018 - 133 comments
National MP Parmjeet Parmar has been accused of threatening to tell the employers of submitters to a Select Committee what they had said in evidence if they did not withdraw their statements.
Written By: - Date published: 2:46 pm, June 3rd, 2018 - 89 comments
Some conversations about poverty are harming those in need. Those conversations contribute to the stigma and shame experienced by struggling families, who are barely surviving, but still trying to maintain some dignity. As a result even those in need are differentiating between the deserving and undeserving poor.
Written By: - Date published: 11:57 am, June 2nd, 2018 - 54 comments
Avoiding meat and dairy is ‘single biggest way’ to reduce your impact on Earth according to a Guardian headline.
Yeah. No it’s not.
Written By: - Date published: 11:38 am, May 30th, 2018 - 30 comments
Quietly mulling on the difference between foreign interference (malign) and influence (benign).
Written By: - Date published: 8:19 am, May 30th, 2018 - 80 comments
The Prime Minister’s chief science adviser Peter Gluckman has described the previous Government’s policy on methamphetamine in Housing Corp houses as hysterical and concluded that there has never been a documented case of someone getting sick from third-hand exposure to methamphetamine.
Written By: - Date published: 7:42 am, May 29th, 2018 - 166 comments
Not just, ‘we’ve got to make the good outweigh the bad’. I mean: why should dairy farming exist here?
Written By: - Date published: 3:52 pm, May 28th, 2018 - 21 comments
For the first time possibly ever a National leader has supported the right of the rank and file to engage in industrial action to improve their living conditions.
Written By: - Date published: 11:58 am, May 25th, 2018 - 46 comments
Being a nimby is the least of Mark Richardson’s problems. His disguised hate speech is harmful to his victims and anyone else in need of help who are left feeling the shame imposed upon them by such careless dialogue.
Written By: - Date published: 8:00 am, May 25th, 2018 - 53 comments
New Zealand has a low carbon energy future plan. What is the strategy to achieve this?
Written By: - Date published: 9:14 am, May 24th, 2018 - 21 comments
Is NZ’s fishing industry just a domestic version of the tobacco companies? And how much would that really matter?
Written By: - Date published: 11:00 am, May 23rd, 2018 - 7 comments
On Thursday 31 May at the University of Auckland, the Fabians are hosting Max Harris on the topic “Is it time for an independent foreign policy?” What would be the costs of a really independent foreign policy, over the benefits of salving our conscience with greater national independence? And where does Trade fit in?
Written By: - Date published: 8:00 am, May 23rd, 2018 - 13 comments
Sam Stubbs, a longstanding outspoken commentator in New Zealand’s financial industry, continues to advocate for a Royal Commission into banking and insurance.
Written By: - Date published: 5:31 pm, May 21st, 2018 - 130 comments
In a welcome move by Labour to relieve energy poverty on those with fixed, low incomes, all beneficiaries (including pensioners) are to get up to $700 extra automatically over winter.
National obviously hate this.
Written By: - Date published: 8:21 am, May 21st, 2018 - 131 comments
National has made a meal of its first critique of Labour’s budget with a poor performance by Simon Bridges and with four claims about the budget that are clearly wrong but which National keep repeating.
Written By: - Date published: 12:31 pm, May 19th, 2018 - 71 comments
Some proposals on why we just got the budget we did.
Written By: - Date published: 8:30 am, May 17th, 2018 - 20 comments
The National Party has recently been on the Government’s case for increasing strikes under their watch. But is that really a fair criticism, and does it jive well with the other things the Opposition has been claiming to value?
Written By: - Date published: 10:58 am, May 14th, 2018 - 199 comments
Simon Bridges has committed the twin political sins of not only believing in trickle down but in publicly confirming his belief.
Written By: - Date published: 9:17 am, May 13th, 2018 - 40 comments
This is as good a year as it is going to get to squeeze your employer for a fair wage.
Written By: - Date published: 8:56 am, May 13th, 2018 - 19 comments
Jim Parker dissects the Australian customs around the presentation of the Budget with comments that are just as applicable to New Zealand’s system.
Written By: - Date published: 10:58 am, May 12th, 2018 - 11 comments
In spite of all the sharp intakes of breathe going on across media outlets, there will be no war between Iran and Israel. Here’s why.
Written By: - Date published: 3:18 pm, May 11th, 2018 - 51 comments
And would you send your child off to a party in a driverless car?
Written By: - Date published: 10:27 am, May 11th, 2018 - 199 comments
The CTU have commissioned UMR to poll kiwis on their attitude to tax. The vast majority believe that more money is needed to fix infrastructure. And a remarkable number support the imposition of a Tobin Tax.
Written By: - Date published: 4:09 pm, May 9th, 2018 - 17 comments
It is great that we have a Minister of Social Development who actually has empathy for poor New Zealanders, as shown by her treatment of dog whistle questions in Parliament today.
Written By: - Date published: 10:19 am, May 9th, 2018 - 30 comments
Just some thoughts that kind of meandered down to the ocean.
Written By: - Date published: 11:55 am, May 8th, 2018 - 59 comments
National MPs have without notice refused to turn up to the House Committee of Parliament. Should they have their pay docked?
Written By: - Date published: 11:38 am, May 8th, 2018 - 60 comments
2018 marks several anniversaries of Karl Marx whose significance for the critique of capitalist society is hard to diminish. But what now for his beliefs?
Written By: - Date published: 7:47 am, May 7th, 2018 - 23 comments
Isn’t it time we at least synchronized the New Zealand budget with the Australian budget?
Written By: - Date published: 10:03 am, May 6th, 2018 - 55 comments
410 ppm. And rising.
Written By: - Date published: 11:18 am, May 4th, 2018 - 14 comments
Thoughts on a resurgent left and a collapsing centre.
Written By: - Date published: 4:11 pm, May 2nd, 2018 - 16 comments
National has promised to overturn Auckland’s Regional Fuel Tax. But has no proposal for how the funding will be replaced.
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