What happened to the Newshub article about Nick Smith and the Pike River film?
A Newshub article where Nick Smith contradicts the Police and Solid Energy about the existence of video showing a body in Pike River has disappeared …
Politics
Abuse of power
Citizenship – one law for the rich
As other citizenship cases are compared to Peter Thiel, it starkly highlights our “one law for the rich” approach.
Thiel shows commitment to New Zealand by spending 12 days in it
Following an intervention by the Ombudsman the Government has been obliged to disclose the number of days that Peter Thiel spent in New Zealand in the five years leading up to his grant of citizenship. The answer is very few.
New information on Glenda Hughes?
On 20 June after Melanie Read’s Newsroom interview Andrew Geddis blogged about possible obstruction of justice by a National Party Board member. That was based on new information in the Barclay case, and may be why the Police have since re-interviewed Glenys Dickson.
Eleven questions about National, English and the Barclay affair.
Julie Fairey raises a plethora of unanswered issues.
Debarclay gets sordid
Newsroom with more revelations: “Intercepted discussions in the Clutha-Southland MP’s electorate office included talk of “sex and drugs”, a source tells Newsroom”. How dismally predictable. Eeeew.
Police have reopened the Barclay investigation
Police has commenced a re-investigation of allegations that the private communications of an individual were intercepted by Mr Todd Barclay MP.
What the National Party president and board knew
Newsroom has another investigative piece on the Barclay debacle. This is not only about a single MP and a lying Prime Minister. It’s also about the governing structure of the political party in charge of running the country, and who was involved in the coverup and dishonesty.
HDPA on the rot that goes to the top
Heather du Plessis-Allan asks why Barclay is taking the fall alone, when – just as with dirty politics – the rot goes to the top of the National Party.
English still digging
Burying the last shred of his credibility in a deep hole forever, Bill claims that nobody realised Todd Barclay recording of secretary might be a crime. It’s like the events of 2008 and 2011 never happened.
So English lied to Parliament too
Labour and Peters have both made complaints over English’s lie to Parliament. Peters is calling on English to step down. That’s going to make any post-election NZF/Nat coalition a bit tricky.
Barclay/English cartooned
Hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil.
Later Todd
- Todd Barclay has announced that he will not stand at the next General Election as National’s Clutha Southland candidate.
Why is Whaleoil being pathetic or paid on Toddy?
We may never know if Todd Barclay was one of the Simon Lusk / Cameron Slater Dirty Politics ‘clients’. However if you read the Whaleoil today, he has finally received instructions (umm) figured out the spin line … Whatever…
Bill English is a liar not a leader
Bill English lied and he tried to coverup what may well be a crime. He has blown his brand big-time.
Barclay debacle recap
From twitter, Holy shit, someone in NZ did some journalism and all hell breaks loose.
National’s Todd Barclay problem
Newsroom has released details about how National handled the police investigation into Todd Barclay’s alleged illegal wiretapping suggesting that Bill English thought it had occurred and that the complaint was dealt with in part by a payment from John Key’s Prime Minister’s fund.
Bridges and flouting the OIA
Simon Bridges tried to block the release of a report on a Kiwirail proposal. The Ombudsman warns against flouting the Official Information Act. But it’s a well established pattern of behaviour with this government.
Nat tactics Ngaro and third term arrogance
Ngaro has fronted up with another grudging apology. English should have fired him and it speaks volumes of third-term arrogance that he hasn’t.
The possible privatisation of Ports of Auckland
The Government is attempting through coercion and cajoling to get Auckland Council to privatise Ports of Auckland.
National’s long history of intimidation
It isn’t just third term arrogance. Ngaro is merely the latest example of National’s long history of attacking, intimidating, and trying to silence critical voices and facts. Take a stroll with me down memory lane…
Ngaro’s “apology” and National’s third term arrogance
Lloyd Burr has some more quotes from Ngaro before he was forced to apologise, and Stuff writes on the Nats third term arrogance.
Alfred Ngaro reprimanded for being “naïve”
Alfred Ngaro has apologised to the Prime Minister for threatening the funding of voluntary organisations critical of the Government, not for expressing the views or even thinking them but for being naïve.
National threatens Government critics with loss of Government contracts
Alfred Ngaro has told a National Conference that critics of the Government can expect to lose Government support for proposed contracts. And that Labour prompted concern about families living in cars.
MSD tried to shut down housing providers
An attempt to gag emergency housing providers got quickly withdrawn when Checkpoint started making enquiries. Given this government’s record, it’s not beyond the bounds of possibility that there will be further attempts to shut down bad news.
Mental health problems are a figment of our imagination and the work of anti government protesters
according to Health Minister Jonathan Coleman
A lesson from South Korea
South Korea has responded to corruption allegations by electing a new president who plans to dump their equivalent of the SIS and oppressive security laws, greatly tax the wealthy, clean out corruption, and hugely strengthen the public sector.
Government misled families about Pike River
TV3 has released video confirming that the atmosphere in the Pike River Mine was inert and raising major doubts about the claim that the mine was too unsafe to extract the bodies or to investigate the causes.
NRT: Spying for the whales
I/S at No Right Turn: “spies are corrosive of our values. Its one thing to spy in wartime, out of military necessity. Its quite another to do it in peace, on your friends, for self-advantage.
Housing affordability data suppressed?
Bill English would have you believe that there is no housing crisis. He desperately needs you to believe it until after the next election. Is Nick Smith deliberately suppressing housing data?
Brownlee determined that Christchurch should suffer too
Christchurch rebuilt must suffer the same central traffic madness as Auckland. Thus decrees Gerry Brownlee, as short-sighted, bullying, and ignorant as ever.
The United Airlines fiasco
United Airlines in America has in the past few days provided a text book example of how a large corporation should not behave.
MSD and our privacy
National’s plans for our privacy and access to social services are a perfect cocktail of over-reach and incompetence.
Down the Gurgler.
Getting sick, tired and angry of this malarkey.
This Government’s citizenship priorities
Environmental activist Michael Tavares request for an exceptional circumstances grant of citizenship has been refused by this Government whereas right wing libertarian Peter Thiel’s request for an exceptional circumstances grant of citizenship was granted. Why the difference?
Hit and Run – time for an inquiry
Nicky Hager and Jon Stephenson’s book Hit and Run makes a compelling case for the Government to conduct a full inquiry to see if New Zealand forces were complicit in the killing of innocent men and women and if there was a cover up.