The Asset Sales petition has the numbers for a referendum, but need to continue to collect signatures til the petition is submitted at the end of the month. Well done! The evidence & the majority of New Zealanders do not support the sales. Keep campaigning!
There’s been a couple of stories in the news over the last 24 hours that could do with some scrutiny: Treasury warns of asset sales over-load; potential sale of Oceania Dairy to an overseas company to set up a milk factory in NZ.
Many want Shearer to break with neoliberalism, clearly state his politics and a new political direction. He became leader with a compelling, but worryingly selective, back-story. Party members want democratic participation. What of consensus-building, coercion, public services, social security, TPP, PPPs, state assets, sustainability?
If you’ve got any asset sales petitions hanging about, quickly send them in to the address on the bottom. The Keep Our Assets coalition are shortly to send in the petition for the Electoral Commission to start verifying the 350,000-odd names they have.
A win for the Nats, a loss for the country. The Maori Council’s request for a judicial review of water rights has been rejected.
Yesterday evening there was an Aotearoa Not For Sale protest in Auckland: 350,000 signatures achieved! Today, Sat 8 Dec, Day of Action against TPPA: NELSON – noon: AUCKLAND – march leaves Aotea Sq at 2.00 pm sharp! [Update: only news when there’s violence!]
Away from the front pages of the MSM, there is information about opposition to the TPP. Aside from the secrecy, the TPP is looking far too complex and all-encompassing. There are some protest events coming up in the next few days.
A week of [updated: video] protests against the secretive TPP began today outside entrance to Sky City Convention Centre, where the latest round of TPP negotiations are being held. The majority of Kiwis are not happy with the secrecy. Jane Kelsey & Canadian Peter Clark identify problems.
This weekend a major nationwide collection drive aims to reach the signature target to force a citizens initiated referendum on asset sales. Can you help to collect signatures?
As expected, the High Court advised today that the government should hold off sale of Mighty River Power. The government is complying.
Amidst all the current scandal and chaos, the Nats’ privatisation agenda grinds on.
Something’s missing from Labour’s position on asset sales. It’s what it will do with the partially privatised companies (if the sales do go […]
Breaking news – the government is delaying the sale of assets until at least March next year.
It’s Members Night in Parliament and the Marriage Equality Bill has passed its first reading. Future Asset Sales have not been entrenched however and National are currently arguing against raising the minimum wage.
Waitangi Tribunal says Government must halt asset sales until Treaty issues sorted, and Tom Scott gives a progress report. National’s wheels are coming off.
I/S at No Right Turn on Key’s made up numbers.
It makes no sense to sell the assets National want to sell. But the particular economic cases just keep getting worse. This week it appears things went disastrous. Now we wonder what’s left to sell? Or will it be a firesale against a back-drop of the courts? And why won’t they face the public over what’s happening?
Minister after Minister denied it, but it turns out that common sense is right. Private power companies charge more. Privatisation surely means that prices will rise. Is it even news when this government lies these days?
Turns out that not many “mums and dads” are planning to buy shares in their own assets.
For some reason the Nats are in a hurry to complete their privatisation programme within two years. Anyone in any doubt as to how the process of consultation with Maori will play out might be informed by some recent history.
A post (reprinted with permission) from bsprout at the Local Bodies blog…
Although Key’s privatisation programme has hit plenty of problems with Maori water rights, his job is made a whole lot easier by the luxury of an ethical main opposition party.
The Waitangi Tribunal has recommended that asset sales should stop.
Will update as reaction emerges.
Loyalty Scheme: $360 million.
Brokerage Fees: $90 million.
Advertising/PR: $30 million.
Iwi Settlements: $unknown.
Lost Revenue: $100 million/year.
Even John Key is now admitting that the asset sale program is facing a serious legal challenge, and that delays in the sales are likely. Any such delay would have several implications…
I joined Mighty River Power today. They offered me $150 incentive payment, no contract and a cheap rate. But couldn’t help wondering – am I part of a push to up their user numbers in preparation for sale? So the numbers look good on the books, even if people (like me) might not stay? What will happen to the share price when lots of users leave after the Government’s flogged 49% off?
John Key has been running round repeating that no one owns water. He’s just being cute with semantics. What is the effective difference between owning water, and owning water rights?
As the Sir Graham Latimer and the Maori Council launch their bid to halt asset sales in the Waitangi Tribunal, the grassroots campaign is gathering steam too. This Saturday is to be a National Day of Action.
The only remaining possible legal threat to the Nats’ plans to sell off our power companies is a Treaty based claim to water rights or riverbeds.
So – what kind of person does well out of asset sales?…
They’re quite literally selling our country down the river.
National’s Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Bill will do significant damage to local democracy as they seek to restrict councils to “core” services, […]
It looks like the Nats’ attempt to pull a swindle on the meaning of “51% ownership” has been averted.
The Herald reports that Tony Ryall said Labour had a history of privatising state owned assets back in the 1980s and early 90s. Ryall was elected to Parliament in 1990 – and it was a National government that privatised the BNZ and Tranzrail. Ryall’s a phony. National’s asset sales programme is a dog.
Independent energy analyst Molly Melhuish is putting out some facts that Tony Ryall will not find comfortable: we pay on average 28.1c per kWh from private companies and 24.79c per kWh from state owned companies. Why is the asset sales process being rushed through parliament, before Treasury can analyse Molly Melhuish’s research?
