TTPA talks under way in Singapore. Jane Kelsey leads critical discussion in NZ: Obama skewing the agenda in favour of US corporates; pharmaceuticals, internet, copyright & more; John Key’s dodgy figures. In Aussie today, a seminar on the TPPA & corporate dominance over women’s rights & health provisions.
A British report on the implications of their ageing population structure highlights, yet again, the lack of any planning on this issue from the Key government…
The Nats lied over the hobbit movie. What are we as citizens to do when a government deliberately and shamelessly lies to us? How can we stop this kind of barefaced lying from happening again?
John Key is keen that the ACT party is “regenerating” and National will be there for them. That’s if a party that registered 0%, 0.2%, 0.4% and 0.5% in the latest round of polls can be called “regenerating”: I’ve seen (other) zombies more full of life…
The reaction to the Auditor General’s report on Key’s Sky City deal is lingering in the headlines much longer than Key would like. “Corrupted process”. “Stench”. “No way to run a country”. Key badly misjudged this one.
John Key is under real pressure over the Solid Energy debacle. He got out the six-shooter – aiming at a 2007 speech by Trevor Mallard to try to blame Labour. Trouble is he’s shot himself. In 2011 he said he “supported Solid Energy’s plan to dig up lignite and turn it into briquettes, saying the Government wanted companies such as Solid Energy, which is Government-owned, to expand.” Expect more shots from the lip.
The thing I like about the Living Wage campaign is the branding represents strongly both the problem and the solution. The Prime Minister fell into its trap when he said that the Living Wage was not a priority for his Government. The statement says it all really. The Government don’t want you to work for a living, they just want you to work.
Today is the second anniversary of the most destructive of the Christchurch earthquakes. Condolences to the friends and families of the dead. Greetings to all who lived through it and remember. Commiserations to those who have been forgotten by this government…
Breaking news, but it certainly looks like John Key has (1) made up nonsense about Sky City, and (2) lied to Parliament.
Update: Key is publicly backing down. Looks like an apology and explanation to Parliament will be needed.
As John Armstrong puts it the AG’s report on the Sky City bid was “deeply disturbing” and “verging on banana republic kind of stuff without the bananas”. One of the competing bidders is talking about a refund of costs “wasted on a bid that was never seriously considered”. And why wouldn’t they?
In last year’s budget Key promised his government would build 2,000 new homes. They delivered (wait for it) … 68. I/S at No Right Turn (happy birthday by the way!) takes them to task…
John Key, as expected, failed to take any sort of lead – or even fast following – on the Living Wage campaign. It’s “a matter for them” – businesses and workers – not something for a mere Prime Minister to be interested in. He thinks it’s nice if businesses pay more as they can afford it, but obviously doesn’t see higher wages as a priority.
In 2009 Key personally declared “War on P”. Predictably, it’s now clear that he lost. In this, as it seems in all matters, John Key is all promise, no deliver.
Greenpeace activists were fined and ordered to do Community Service – for serving the global community by protesting about Climate Change & the oil industry. Others get honours like knighthoods for services that are damaging for the majority in the community. Misplaced values? [update] RNZ interview with Lucy Lawless.
Bryce Edwards has a useful roundup of the goings on at Waitangi.
I wonder how the polls would look if the sampling included Kiwis who have fled the country?
One of the biggest failures of the Key government is the continuing massive exodus to Australia. This was an issue that Key made a core focus of the 2008 election. Remember the Westpac Stadium clip?…
As New Zealand collectively rolls its eyes at the paucity of ideas and vision, and surfeit of excuse-making and responsibility denying in Key’s state of the nation speech (it was so bad John Armstrong wrote a third piece on how great the reshuffle was, instead of praising the speech), Whaleoil – of all people – asks a good question: What will Key’s legacy be?
Key’s opening speech for the year is a dreary, dishonest, and vacuous affair, completely bereft of vision. I haven’t seen an enthustastic response reported anywhere yet.
“I’d love to see wages drop”. Remember when John Key said that? Well now our glorious PM is getting all excited about how we can attract investment with our low wages and lack of employment protections.
The biggest winner is Dr Nick Smith. He returns to Cabinet after his fall from grace last year, and is appointed as Minister for Creating a Perception of Crisis in Order to Justify Savage Cutbacks in Entitlements.
The biggest losers are Kate Wilkinson and Phil Heatley, who have been dropped from Cabinet altogether. Both have failed to perform, and their inability to communicate with the smoothness of someone like Hekia Parata will have counted against them.
So Nick Smith is to be returned to cabinet after spending nearly a year on the bench for his ethical flaws. Presumably 10 months on the back benches heals all those desires to abuse your powers to try to help your friends get money.
In the continuing saga of Kim Dotcom against the forces of blind, silly, and technically illiterate conservatism, amongst whom John Key (our Minister of International Embarrassment) fits pretty well. Kim Dotcom has launched a new file storage service. Although that is not strictly correct – rather people associated with him did. It is the “Mega” and is accessible at present only using the https://mega.co.nz. And it is a bit bogged down with mega demand…
The Antarctic Ocean Alliance is hoping that Key’s experience in Antarctica will move him to join the effort to create a marine reserve there. Seems unlikely to me – but I hope that Key proves me wrong…
Today, Fran O’Sullivan calls Key out on his complete failure on jobs: “If I have one New Year’s wish it is that John Key returns from his Hawaiian summer holiday brimming with enough determination to challenge the nation’s employers – and himself – to tackle youth unemployment.” In fact, she is the latest of the rightwing’s pundits to conclude neoliberalism has failed.
Individualism & “celebrity” PM, John Key were still strong in 2012. But, there was opposition from some (often local) groups working collaboratively: Occupy, Glen Innes protesters, MUNZ, Asset Sales referendum, AAAP advocacy activism, manufacturing inquiry, NZLP democratisation, TS nest of vipers. And 2013?
Parata isn’t the most corrupt minister Key has but she’s definitely the most incompetent. Now, the Secretary of Education has been paid out to take the fall for Hekia’s incompetence and that of her sister, Apryll, Deputy Secretary Performance and Change. Parata has maintained her reputation for nepotism being an appalling people manager. But she won’t go, and Key won’t make her.
On TV3 this morning, John Key was soothing and slick. All is well on Planet Key, and critics are delusional. He reeled of numbers and facts, but material realities of daily lives, and the suffering of people on low incomes aren’t mentioned. And asset sales?
Recent pieces by Bernard Hickey and John Armstrong both highlighted the problem of our aging population and the unsustainability of super – in Hickey’s memorable words we are “consuming our future”. Armstrong tries to balme MMP, but that won’t wash, it’s just the usual short-sighted Nat stupidity…
Key was wrong about boot camps. He’s wrong about education, the environment, the democratic rights of Canterbury, the miraculous power of cycleways, the economy, New Zealand’s international obligations on climate change, and much more besides. Every year in office this arrogant government does yet more damage.
Kim DotCom has been twittering about his new website that is under development to the amusement of some observers. But for us in NZ we’re probably less interested in the layout of his file manager than what is actually in the screenshot of the file manager. Promises yet more pain for the government and it’s inept police and security services.
John Key on whether Brendan Horan has the moral right to stay in Parliament: “I don’t think he would do if Winston Peters can really put up the arguments that he is that whatever he (Horan) has done is so bad that he deserves to be expelled from the party and has really bought (sic) Parliament into disrepute, but the issue is: can and will he prove that?”. Can anyone say: Richard Worth?
Brendan Horan has been booted out of New Zealand First’s caucus over the scandal involving his late mother’s estate. Legally, he can now remain on in Parliament as an independent MP, or join another party. But he ought not. He has no claim to represent anyone but those who party voted NZF, and if he can’t represent them, he must let the next person on the list do so.
There’s a fabulous win for consumers and a Government good news story out of the Commerce Commission yesterday – significant cuts in the cost of broadband for consumers. You. But John Key’s not happy and is threatening to legislate over the decision.
Sure, National is still in the mid-40s and Key will back himself to crucify Shearer in the debates, but his own brand is suffering badly. He’s failed on jobs and increasingly being seen as out of touch. So, is making the news for eating a grasshopper really a smart move?
