Anthony Rimell – why I am standing for Parliament
Anthony Rimell is Labour’s candidate for the Ilam seat. In this post he sets out the reasons why he is standing for Parliament.
Politics
political parties
Justin Lester: Why Wellington, why Labour, and how did he make conference cry?
Via Noted, the Mayor of Wellington talks about his city, his mayoralty, and why he’s Labour.
Andrew Little on The Nation
A good interview with Andrew Little on The Nation. Among the many topics covered, Little stated that all pledges can be funded without raising taxes.
What should Labour and the Greens do in Ilam?
Christchurch Councillor Raf Manji has announced that he will be standing as an independent against Gerry Brownlee for the Ilam seat in Christchurch.
Community groups abandon Smith’s water forum
Will Nick Smith get the message and set in place a realistic consultation process and safe standards, or will he persist with a plan so bad that no one wants to be associated with it?
Nick legged it
Remember how the move of Nick Leggett to National was supposed to be some big disaster for Labour?
TOP climate change policy
Morgan’s TOP climate change policy is out, and it commits to “net zero carbon emissions by 2050”. There’s lots to like…
Roads not health
A new coalition protests health under-funding, while the cost of the holiday highway blows out. Our government has its priorities all screwed up.
Congratulations Jacinda Ardern!
Will Collins make a move?
The crisis around English’s amateur-hour handling of the super announcement is an opportunity for Judith Collins.
National accuses John Key of shying away from the hard issues
Shambolic scenes as Bill English’s twitter account tweets criticism of John Key not taking the hard decisions regarding superannuation eligibility, then the tweet gets deleted. And Bill did not know the tweet had been sent out.
Swimmable standards that aren’t for all of our rivers except most of them
Swimmable standards that aren’t, for all of our rivers except most of them, sometime maybe not now. Nat policy at its finest.
A social media primer for progressive candidates
Labour Party General Secretary Andrew Kirton recently sent out a message to Labour Candidates which of itself was a lesson on all things social media …
Encouraging Signs
A refreshing shift in NZ’s political environment.
Thanks Annette
I well remember going to see new Minister of Employment Annette King in 1989 to ask for support for group apprenticeship in the motor industry. “Seems like a good idea, we’ll put up $50,000.” she said. I nearly fell off my chair. It was not the usual response from Ministers in those days, but is Annette King to a T – positive, decisive, and supportive.
Coalition building – deft politics from Little
Helen Clark wrote the book on MMP coalition government, shoring up alliances on the left and the right. Looks like Andrew Little has read the book. Labour + Green + NZF = government.
Labour: Greens are the first cab off the rank
Andrew Little has confirmed that the Green Party will be first party Labour looks to for a coalition deal after the election.
Who would have thunk that Government’s approach to housing is inadequate
Radio New Zealand has reported on a review of the Government’s housing policy which described it as fragmented and lacking a robust plan but it took intervention by the Ombudsman to have the review released.
Great reaction to Jacinda move
The (presumed) move to Jacinda Ardern as deputy leader has been very well received.
Annette King standing down as deputy leader
In breaking news Annette King is standing down as deputy leader of the Labour Party and Andrew Little will nominate Jacinda Ardern as deputy leader.
National bolster their moribund blue-greens
I read this morning in Politik that Vernon Tava has left the Greens and appears to be leaning towards National. It doesn’t seem to me to much of a problem to lose a conservationist to National. It just means that the Greens can concentrate more effectively on the work of getting everyone trying to build a cleaner sustainable future.
Homeless crisis hidden in plain sight
Bill blames the blowout in emergency housing grants on the “hidden homeless”. Hidden only from those who will not see. Hidden only from a government that deliberately chooses for political reasons not to collect the relevant data.
Two more Labour candidate selections
Angela Warren-Clark (Tauranga Women’s Refuge manager) for Bay of Plenty and Jan Tinetti (Principal) for Tauranga. These are the kinds of grounded, real-world perspectives that we need in Parliament.
Housing crisis what housing crisis
The Government’s estimate of the extent of the housing crisis has recently been shown to be totally out of touch and to add further pathos it is counting kiwi families urgently housed in motels in tourism statistics.
Green Party Member’s Bill to protect freshwater
The Green Party has launched a member’s bill that will keep water from underground sources, called aquifers, safe from pollution and contamination.
Green Party candidates and vision speech (updated)
James Shaw addresses Green Party candidates and shares their vision for Aotearoa New Zealand
Media response to the Mt Albert By election result
The media have responded to the Mt Albert by election result by raising the prospect of Jacinda Ardern becoming deputy leader of the Labour Party.
The Mt Albert By election
It is election day today in Mt Albert for the successor to David Shearer.
Comments are open.
It’s past time to be bold about water
Water is both the front line and the rallying cry.
Mt Albert – the left and the right
All the best to all candidates, and thank you to Julie Anne Genter and Jacinda Ardern for showing us all such a model of cooperation.
Two big policy fails
This is what you get with a hasty, reactive, “top down” policy process.
Nick Smith becomes Minister of Government Information
The Government intends to change the definitions of various indicators in an effort to solve some of the country’s most serious problems.
Forest and Bird takes it the Government in the Supreme Court
The Crown is seeking to overturn the Court of Appeal decision obtained by Forest and Bird which is preventing Conservation land in the Hawkes Bay from being used for the controversial Ruataniwha dam.
2017
The left is facing the possiblity of its fourth election loss in a row. What type of campaign should it run this year to win?
Kaupapa Pākehā
What if we based our politics on relationships not power?
Nick Smith screws up again
We should probably just schedule this as a monthly post.