Ghost houses and the invisible hand
Auckland has an urgent deficit of 20,000 to 30,000 houses. Meanwhile 22,000 houses are sitting empty. Behold the efficiency of the market!
Economy
Posts on the economy, work, business, income, and labour
Peter Talley on health and safety law: unions are evil, workers’ lives cheap
Whenever unionists talk about the bad employers who put profit over people’s lives, the right wave it away as fear-mongering. Well, here it is straight from the horse’s mouth.
Costly government
This is the true irony of National governments. Their entire platform is one of “fiscal responsibility” and “good economic management” yet time and time again they spend money the way I did when I was a teenager: false economies and short-term wish fulfilment.
The third way according to Tony Blair
Supporters of Tony Blair’s third way and the need for Labour to be aspirational should reflect on recent reports of his huge wealth earned with taxpayer support while he has been engaged on official business.
The Responsibilities of Government
The death of Emma-Lita Bourne is not just a personal tragedy for the family: it is an event that should make New Zealand angry with the powerful people in our society who control the purse strings. They are responsible for condemning thousands of children to life-threatening conditions. And they are doing it in our name!
Heartless government
A few stories of recent weeks which show exactly what kind of government we have.
The TV3 boycott
Boycotts are a two-edged sword. The call to boycott TV3 is not a simple matter.
White Man Behind A Desk: Social Bonds
White Man Behind A Desk on the death of government, social bonds, and more. Perfect for a Friday!
Chickens Coming Home to Roost
“Rock-star economy” is a catch-phrase that has served very well to persuade us that we are doing well in economic terms. But “chickens coming home to roost” and “living in a fool’s paradise” may be nearer the truth about our economic performance.
Bravo big business!
Bravo to those “big business” leaders who have come out in support of strong universal health and safety legislation. Shame on the Collins faction in Cabinet who are fighting to water it down.
Labour. Horse. Water.
Sometimes…often…I just can’t get my head around people who make obvious and simple things kinda difficult and fraught.
#Sheepgate – it was the official’s fault
National is appearing to be changing tack and trying to now blame a junior official rather than the Labour Party for the failure to complete the Gulf Free Trade Agreement. And the promised release of the relevant cabinet papers proving it was all Labour’s fault has still not occurred.
TPP designed to cripple our health system
“[The TPP] appears to be designed to cripple New Zealand’s strong public healthcare programme and to inhibit the adoption of similar programmes in developing countries.”
Spark sponsoring hate blogger
Hey Spark – this is a terrible, terrible decision…
OECD sounding the alarm
Freeing up Auckland land for private development and sale at market rates isn’t going to cut it.
Petition for safer workplaces
Helen Kelly: “Sign our petition and tell John Key that you support better health and safety in workplaces!”
The myth of “Retirement Savings”
Advocates of Kiwisaver and other funded “retirement savings” schemes perpetuate the fundamental misunderstanding that “conventional” in New Zealand’s case “neo-liberal” economists, speculators, finance companies, politicians and those with a lot of share holding wealth in non-productive enterprises like to perpetuate.
Relationships Aotearoa to close today
Relationships Aotearoa is closing its doors today, as a result of ineptitude and indifference on the part of the Government. Claimed safeguards are looking incredibly shaky. Only three of the five organisations touted to take up the work are prepared to do so. And MSD has caused upset to the Privacy Commissioner by misrepresenting his views.
Flip Flop isn’t just another word for a Jandal
IN a breaking news update, the New Zealand Prime Minister has a revelation on Health and Safety
Anti-union rant in The Herald
An anonymous editorial in The Herald this morning really is atrocious. Apparently the limited uptake one of the Nats’ pet education policies is all the fault of the unions.
Helen Kelly Q+A on health and safety
Murdoch on state houses then and now
The shame of poverty in NZ
According to the Ministry of Social Development child poverty is worse in NZ than in any European country. According to the Child Poverty Action Group new figures are going to show an increase in poverty. According to the coroner a damp unhealthy state house contributed to the death of a child. Welcome to the “brighter future”.
De Boni on privatising mental health
A superb piece by Dita De Boni on the Nats’ plans to privatise mental health. See also (and sign!) Labour’s open letter opposing the “social bonds” scheme.
O’Brien on health and safety
Tova O’Brien has written an excellent piece on squabbles within National over health and safety legislation, calling it a disgrace and a power-play by the Collins faction.
Shaw interview – we have a crony capitalist state
New Greens co-leader James Shaw on: climate change, ruling out coalition with National, creeping crony capitalism, and more…
The stupidest idea this Government has had yet
One News has reported that the Government is on the verge of introducing Social Bonds whereby investors in social services will be rewarded if targets are met.
Auto Kiwisaver
Nice to see English acknowledging the importance of Kiwisaver – thanks Michael Cullen, thanks Helen Clark! I certainly support default enrollment. But – isn’t this Big Government Nanny State Gone Mad?
Money for nothing and the sheep are for free
The legal suit offered as part justification for the Government paying $11 million to a Saudi businessman was apparently “off the table” at the time that Cabinet agreed to the payment. So why was the payment made? And why didn’t Murray McCully tell this to Cabinet or to Parliament earlier?
All our eggs in the dairy basket
This government has been artificiality buoyed by a diary boom, now the bust leaves us highly exposed.
Sheepgate
It has emerged that the New Zealand Government has paid money to a Saudi businessman allegedly to settle a legal dispute that does not exist but more probably to persuade the Saudi Government to enter into a free trade agreement. Update – and maybe there was a threat of legal action but because of the actions of National, not Labour.
Some Nats growing a spine on health and safety?
Helen Kelly and the CTU have done a great job raising the issues of workplace health and safety. Have they even got the attention of some Nats? Apparently there are delays to proposed changes as some in caucus resist.
Campbell on the budget
Should have covered this earlier – extracts from Gordon Campbell on the budget.
Epsom has its finger on the pulse of the people
So what is important to the people of Epsom? Paul Goldsmith in his Newsletter recently told us what is important to him and suggested what might be important to us.
Mortgagee sales
A marked drop in mortgagee sales recently. Good news?
Superannuation and Government forecasts
National has again refused to consider doing anything about the future of Superannuation. Yet its policies of increasing Crown debt, stopping contributions to the Cullen Fund and attacking Kiwisaver have made a discussion about the future of superannuation more important than ever.