Hayek’s Acolytes and History’s Judgement
While we should acknowledge Jim Bolger’s life of service to New Zealand we should also recognise the critical and continuing damage done to New Zealand by his government.
Politics
Posts on government and governence at national and local level, political parties,politicians, and political participation
Plunket declares war on the BSA
Sean Plunket has threatened to sue the Broadcasting Standards Authority after it released a draft opinion suggesting that broadcasters using the internet should be subject to the same requirements as traditional broadcasters.
Crime Soars Under National
Violent crime, sexual assaults and retail crime soar under National Party
Fiscal Choices: Scandinavia or America?
Brian Easton says we cannot attain a sustainable Scandinavian-type quality of life while keeping the existing tax system in place
Government by the Farmers for the Farmers
In a move that further undermines the country’s response to the climate crisis the Government has halved the methane reduction goal and determined that farms will not pay a price for greenhouse gas emissions.
New Zealand’s latest tourism promo just dropped
“The Government of New Zild has made a new tourism ad and it’s surprisingly honest and informative!”
The 2025 Local Government Election results
The provisional Local Government election results have shown appalling turnout especially in Auckland and a voter reaction against large rates increases, potentially caused by the shelving of the Three Waters Reform package.
National Crashes in latest poll
National crashing into the 20s in the latest Couria Poll must have increased dramatically the prospects of Christopher Luxon being deposed as Prime Minister.
Do not feed the Droll
Martyn Bradbury’s attacks on Winston Peters and an attack on his home has allowed Winston to claim victimhood status and hog the media spotlight.
Voices for Freedom’s local government campaign
Anti vax organisation Voices for Freedom has published a glossy well presented booklet suggesting how local body campaigns should be run. And it looks like a number of right wing campaigns are borrowing heavily from the information in the booklet.
The Department of War
The United States Department of Defense has been renamed as the Department of War. Nobody can be under any illusions anymore. More war is coming.
Simeon Brown Cagey On Privatisation Meeting with Serco
The British multinational meeting was first reported by ODT. Plus: Physician Associates spell more danger for the health of our health system
Luxon’s bad faith stunt
Christopher Luxon recently wrote to Chris Hipkins seeking a bipartisan approach to gas drilling but then immediately turned this into a farce by leaking the letter to the Herald.
Gaza peace proposal ignores the terrorism of the Zionist state
In 1947 the Palestine as an area held under mandate by the UK was divided in resolution 181. The creation of independent Arab and Jewish States plus Jerusalem outside both. Trumps’ new ‘peace plan’ isn’t one because it doesn’t deal with the problem of Zionist terrorism that prevents the creation of a Palestinian state. It merely creates a temporary ceasefire without looking at the problem. New Zealand and other UN members should just start treating Israel as a terrorist state.
On The Shameful, Incompetent Decision On Palestine
The last time New Zealand put itself on the wrong side of history was when a New Zealand rugby team toured apartheid South Africa just after schoolchildren were gunned down on the streets of Soweto.
Christopher Luxon: We’ve shown meaningful leadership on Palestine
Hipkins also declared his stance on Palestine recognition on the day, but it wasn’t widely reported.
The Government wants to cheat the next election result
Christopher Luxon is sticking to his lines that the proposed changes to the Electoral Law will speed up the result even though this will disenfranchise an estimated 55,000 kiwis and even though the Chief Electoral Officer has said that if properly resourced the changes will make no difference.
Winston Peters declares “No recognition of Palestine”
After a few months of telling Kiwis a decision on Palestine was imminent, Peters finally shared NZ’s official position today. Other countries had done so months earlier.
Old man yells at rest of the world
Winston Peters has blamed the two most populous countries in the world for contributing to climate change, a problem that many in his party thinks does not exist.
Kiwis are now dying in corridors & carparks
Christchurch joins Nelson ED to sound the alarm as Code Red rages across NZ departments
National announces reversal of School Building Project cuts
In the hope that it can address the Construction Industry crisis National has announced a partial reversal of cuts made to school building project made earlier in its term.
So much for the relentless focus on growth
National’s crashing of GDP growth figures makes a mockery of its claim earlier this year that the Government was relentlessly focussed on unleashing growth.
Whanganui MP Carl Bates shielded 25 rentals from disclosure
Bates set up a family trust after the election, presumably to hide his rentals from disclosure.
The primary concern of the Left is Truth not Victory
The US right’s claim the left was responsible for the assassination of Charlie Kirk is unravelling as more details of the alleged killer emerge.
The infantilisation of Western Grand Strategy – and the rise of Eurasia.
The greatest threat Russia poses to Europe is not that it marches west but that it turns its back and builds a brighter future to the east. We may be witnessing the emergence of a Eurasian World Order.
Psy-Op Alert: The Four Horsemen of the Linguistic Apocalypse
‘Shared values,’ ‘like-minded partners,’ the ‘rules-based order,’ and the ‘Indo-Pacific’ have become the Five Eyes nations’ favourite rhetorical weapons in their contest with declared adversaries.
Duncan Garner – National is f&*ked
A beehive leak has led Duncan Garner to form the firm conclusion that National is
f&*ked.
This trick of National could win them the 2026 election
US voter suppression tactics are back in vogue and National’s Coalition is bringing them to Aotearoa New Zealand
Local and by-election turnouts
I was asked “Do you think that the Tamaki Makaurau by-election will be a signal of whether the TMP almost clean sweep of the Maori electorate seats will continue?”. My response was that the characteristic of by-elections was that results were defined by people not voting. It is also what is going to happen in local body elections later this year. That is a problem.
Post updated
The Tamaki Makaurau by election
With a very small turnout and half of the votes counted it appears that Orini Kaipara will win the Tamaki Makaurau by election.
Update: Peeni Henare has conceded.
Simeon Brown plays with Kiwi lives
Perhaps the biggest news from a jam packed news week is how, under National’s Health Ministers Shane Reti & Simeon Brown, Health NZ illegally hid staffing data for over a year to conceal their systemic understaffing of our public health.
So, New Zealand First Then?
In 2026 New Zealand First in all likelihood will be back in power because Labour and National will need them to form government.
The Figjam Prime Minister
Yesterday Christopher Luxon broke an embargo, claimed credit for an announcement that was made in 2021 and gave cover to an American corporate backtracking on an earlier promise to construct new data centres.
Government to avoid proper scrutiny of plans to allow rich foreigners to buy mansions
Remember Act’s Regulatory Standards Bill which would establish principles of responsible regulation and increase transparency? It appears that not all policy will be subject to these requirements. Especially if they affect rich foreigners buying local mansions.
Guest Post – Planning By Firing Squad
The Planning by Firing Squad approach is characterised by being very rushed, lacking in detail, an almost total lack of public consultation, non-existent local knowledge and consistently paying little heed to environmental effects. It is a classic Wellington Ivory Tower approach.
Foreign Buyers Ban Reversal A Sell Out By Winston Peters & His Party
NZ First’s legacy is now firmly NZ Last