You know your idea doesn’t work when…
You, the Prime Minister, have to write personally to 175 employers to implore them to pretty please take some of these boot camp kids so the scheme doesn’t look like quite as much of a failure as it is…
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Planet Key, Planet Paula, and the War on the Poor
Over the last week, the government’s off-world set of distorted realities has come to the foreground: those of “Planet John Key” and “Planet Paula”. These worlds highlight the way Bennett’s latest welfare reforms wage war on the poor and undermine fairness and democracy.
Jobs? In Oz…
I saw this story on Friday saying about how the number of jobs available on seek.co.nz is up. Paula Bennett and John Key regularly come up with stories about how many jobs there are out there – you only need to look at trademe or seek – but they don’t mention that…
Sam Lotu-Iiga for mayor?
Slater/Lusk are spending a hell of a lot of time talking about how the Key Government’s one-seat majority is at stake if a dissatisfied, bored backbencher decides to quit. One name that keeps popping up is Sam Lotu-Iiga. I understand the next stage will be a ‘Draft Sam’ faux mayoral campaign to pressure Key and Joyce into making him a minister.
Waiting for the other shoe to drop
The Collins Faction is tooling up again. While Judith Collins herself has been trying to present a more reasonable face in the House, her Slater/Lusk campaign team is trying to undermine her challenger, Joyce, and the incumbent, Key. Upping Tau Henare’s ridiculous run for Speaker is naked opportunism – but a closer read of Whaleoil, and some inside tips, point to a far more ambitious play on the way
Abdicating our global responsibility
With proposed ETS changes National is abdicating our responsibility on the world stage, and sending the bill to the taxpayers. The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment calls it ‘a farce’. It’s cowardly, it’s weak, and it’s shafting the working Kiwi.
Poverty Watch 3
Welcome to Poverty Watch, a weekly update on National’s lack of response to the urgent and growing issue of poverty in NZ. This week: Shearer’s education speech stirs up the debate, the Greens start Champions for Children, and the Nats are in denial…
Long term model or beneficiary bashing?
“When you take a long-term model, there’s no place to hide”. Interesting, don’t you think, the issue – the only issue – that the Nats have chosen to take a long-term model of?
Latest education stuffup quickest U-turn ever
Brownlee and Parata announced school closures and explained the rationale. Now they’ve backed down and they’re trying to blame a Ministry mistake. This was the quickest U-turn in the history of politics. Update: And this morning it seems that closures and mergers are back on again – does anyone know what is going on?
ImperatorFish: He Who Consults Wins
$1 million well spent?
So the current people on benefits will cost $78 billion over the course of their lifetime. To get this useless $78 billion factoid, National have given an Australian company $1 million of our money – next year, they’ll do it again, to see if the number has changed any. What use is this number? It’s not good for budgeting and doesn’t seem to actually tell us anything useful – so why is the government wasting money while telling us times are tight?
The Canterbury dictatorship
Puddleglum at The Political Scientist has written an encyclopedic and scathing critique of the Nats’ dictatorship in Canterbury.
Redundancies, consultants, professional development
National would like us to believe that it is the party of sound business management. How sound is it to spend $114 million on redundancies, while simultaneously running up a $910 million bill on external consultants?
Energy efficiency
If Europe can ban incandescent light bulbs, if America can legislate to require 54.5 MPG fuel efficient cars, why can’t New Zealand make some progress on energy efficiency?
Nats in denial about education and poverty
Shearer’s speech on Sunday has sparked the discussions that this country needed to have about education, about poverty, and about the sad link between them. With every statement the Nats show how deeply in denial they are about these issues.
Something missing from asset sales debate
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 […]
NRT: Extended
No Right Turn on the Nats’ continuing contempt for democracy in Canterbury.
Poverty Watch 2
Welcome to Poverty Watch, a weekly update on the National government’s lack of response to the urgent and growing issue of poverty in NZ. In relevant news this week a study estimates the cost of child poverty in NZ to be $10 billion per year.
Unqualified teachers in charter schools condemned
A stinging report from the Ministry of Education condemns the proposed use of unqualified teachers in charter schools. The Nats won’t listen because the Nats don’t care about the quality of education, they only care about privatising it.
Water rights hui
It’s easy to see why Key has forbidden National MPs from attending the national water rights hui – he’s playing divide and rule with Maori. More difficult to understand is the Maori Party’s craven decision to stay away. Hone Harawira condemns them in the strongest possible language.
Trouble? Re-announce a distraction…
I see Paula Benefit is up to her old tricks again. As the government desperately wants to be doing something other than not attending huis over water rights, it’s up to Paula to pull a benefit bash. But she’s obviously run out of ideas so now we’re re-announcing the old bene-bashes.
If they didn’t want to sell it, we would all own it
The National/Act government wants to sell essential public infrastructure assets that we all own, and that returns a public dividend, to a few of its mates. It’s private appropriation of public assets that causes the problem. Take that away and the problem becomes different, and resolution much easier.
Will National think of the children?
The Herald has had a plethora of columns urging action on the 230,000-270,000 in Child Poverty this week. There have been 3 weighty reports on Child Poverty out recently to spur them, but the even conservative ol’ Granny Herald seems to have got the message – will National?
Bye bye workers’ rights
The government is pushing on with their Environmental Relations Act Amendment Bill, reducing workers’ rights to rest breaks.
Asset sales delayed
Breaking news – the government is delaying the sale of assets until at least March next year.
National – Conservative coalition
The National – Conservative dream ticket for 2014 suffered a bit of a setback in the weekend, when Colin Craig pronounced Key “too gay for Helensville”. Note – this post is not satire.
Poverty Watch 1
A weekly post on the status of poverty in NZ, and a list of the National government’s responses, or lack thereof. To date the government has not set any target for reducing poverty.
Government in turmoil over spending cap
Conflict between support parties. The government without the majority needed for legislation. The Nats’ economic plans in turmoil. Thank goodness the country is in such safe, steady hands.
Imperator Fish Exclusive: Leaked Government Poverty Plan
Scott at Imperator Fish has managed to get his hands on a top-secret document that sets out in detail National’s plan to tackle the child poverty issue.
A quick question
Bennett (playing the distraction card) is pushing her drug testing policy again. I have a question for the supporters of this policy which remains unanswered…
Turning a blind eye to poverty
In Parliament yesterday, Metiria Turei challenged Key on his record on poverty, holding up a graph of the GINI index, showing the increase in inequality under National. Key nonsensically blamed the recession – why must it be that in a recession the poor get poorer while the rich still get richer? That’s a result of policy that protects the rich, not an inevitability.
Turn off turnout – National’s 2014 strategy?
Depress turnout among low-income voters by changing the enrolment rules – it’s an old right-wing trick. The Republicans are doing it in the US – it looks like National may try it on here. They should not succeed.
Just another sell-out
The Maori Party is meeting with National to discuss the Waitangi Tribunal’s report on water and asset sales today. Notice how no-one’s saying ‘will they walk if the Nats ignore the Tribunal and proceed to breach the Treaty?’ That’s what happens when you cry wolf then sell out time after time. Everyone knows Turia wants her comfy limo seat more than anything else.
Good work by Parker
David Parker got stuck in to the Nats last week, with a 30 page report that laid bare National’s appalling economic record, and presented an outline of Labour’s alternatives. Good work from Parker – everyone should read it.
National’s achievement: Highest ever inequality
The exodus to Australia is at record levels. Falling wages have seen social inequality rise to record levels. Good job National.
On decile ratings of schools
Decile ratings of schools are to be dropped from ERO reports because they are “confusing” and “unfair” and lead to “white flight”. Unlike, say, ropey national standards data. Uh huh.