Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, June 11th, 2021 - 144 comments
Last week’s announcement of major changes to the New Zealand Upgrade program in my view was welcome.
Written By: - Date published: 12:20 pm, June 8th, 2021 - 117 comments
On the weekend Andrea Vance gave the Government a bit of a serve about its record on openness and transparency. But a deeper dig into the issue suggests that the cause may have nothing to do with the Government’s preferences and everything to do with the volume of information requests made by the opposition.
Written By: - Date published: 11:12 am, June 6th, 2021 - 5 comments
This week has seen the Australian Broadcasting Corporation to suggest that Australia is adopting a principled stand and New Zealand has sold its soul to China for trade. But the comments by Morrison and Ardern made after their Queenstown meeting suggests the opposite.
Written By: - Date published: 9:07 am, June 4th, 2021 - 29 comments
National’s week from hell is further evidence of a culture problem that will not be easily solved.
Written By: - Date published: 8:39 am, June 2nd, 2021 - 40 comments
Last night the story about Nick Smith’s issues that caused his resignation finally broke, or did it?
Written By: - Date published: 7:58 am, June 1st, 2021 - 48 comments
Nick Smith is leaving Parliament not only to spend more time with his family but also because details of an employment dispute started after he yelled at a junior staffer were leaked.
Written By: - Date published: 7:35 am, May 28th, 2021 - 44 comments
In the latest Colmar Brunton poll although National’s result and Judith Collins’ result as preferred Prime Minister went up slightly her approval rating for her job performance has plunged deep into negative figures.
Written By: - Date published: 8:37 am, May 27th, 2021 - 20 comments
Former top aide Dominic Cummings has accused UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson of being unfit for the job, and of making constant U-turns, “like a shopping trolley smashing from one side of the aisle to the other”.
Written By: - Date published: 12:35 pm, May 26th, 2021 - 32 comments
Right now, in terms of our Covid response, New Zealand is in a unique position. It has no community spread of Covid and its level of restrictions is the most permissive in the world. But this does not stop Chris Bishop from trying to double guess the handling of the pandemic.
Written By: - Date published: 8:23 am, May 25th, 2021 - 39 comments
This is day five of the post Ruthenasia era and the response from the right is really underwhelming. The most notable response is a comment by Peter Dunne questioning whether 11 year olds are ever interested in politics.
Written By: - Date published: 9:58 am, May 22nd, 2021 - 31 comments
It is good to see our comrades in the Taxpayers Union celebrate the glorious Socialist revolution that is currently engulfing Aotearoa.
Written By: - Date published: 8:56 am, May 22nd, 2021 - 34 comments
Back in the day when we had useful Opposition, business leadership could be relied upon to think as if they had interests in common as business. This budget, their ability to think let alone lead has deserted them.
Written By: - Date published: 8:03 am, May 21st, 2021 - 61 comments
National presented a particularly glum picture in Parliament yesterday. And it was not only the realisation that Judith Collins is out of her depth. It was because this budget spells the end of Ruthenasia.
Written By: - Date published: 8:41 pm, May 20th, 2021 - 5 comments
Today’s budget debate suggests that the effective leader of the opposition may not be the leader of the National Party.
Written By: - Date published: 12:37 pm, May 20th, 2021 - 71 comments
Headline change, budget is lifting weekly main benefit rates by between $32 and $55 per adult to tackle inequality and child poverty, as well as reinstating the Training Incentive Allowance.
Written By: - Date published: 10:22 am, May 20th, 2021 - 54 comments
Fresh from a claim that the Ministry of Education is trying to persuade kids not to eat home made lunches, David Seymour has taken aim at a new target, a radical education policy that intends to teach our kids about racism and inequality and what has happened in the country’s past.
Written By: - Date published: 11:31 pm, May 17th, 2021 - 35 comments
Originally posted on Nick Kelly’s Blog In a nation that has suffered over 100,000 COVID-19 deaths, one may be somewhat taken aback to see the latest YouGov Poll where The Conservative Party enjoy a 15% lead over the Labour Opposition. 17 months after the Conservatives won the 2019 General Election, it would be easy to […]
Written By: - Date published: 1:27 pm, May 17th, 2021 - 20 comments
Forlorn for now though they may be, this is the advice National MPs need right now.
Written By: - Date published: 8:04 pm, May 16th, 2021 - 55 comments
The latest TV 3 Reid Research Poll has Judith Collins’ preferred leadership rating cut by two thirds. Judith’s racist dog whistling is clearly not working.
Written By: - Date published: 9:50 am, May 15th, 2021 - 68 comments
The world may never get back to a pre covid state. Until herd immunity is achieved throughout large swathes of the world as well as in Aotearoa New Zealand our borders need to continue to be closely monitored. The anti vaccination movement and the failure to ensure equitable vaccine distribution may mean that our current messy dread filled reality will continue.
Written By: - Date published: 7:43 am, May 13th, 2021 - 113 comments
There were dramatic scenes in Parliament yesterday. Judith Collins chose to again attack Jacinda Ardern about the He Puapua report. And Māori Party Co leader Rawiri Waititi expressed his disgust at her race baiting in a uniquely New Zealand way.
Written By: - Date published: 8:02 am, May 12th, 2021 - 34 comments
Some good news from yesterday. The Government has decided to walk back earlier comments suggesting a wage freeze for teachers and nurses.
Written By: - Date published: 9:22 am, May 10th, 2021 - 52 comments
Judith Collins has applied the dog whistle to the He Puapua report and suggested that it is evidence of the Government wanting to radically change New Zealand society. But a check through history shows that the report is based on an International Treaty that National signed up to.
Written By: - Date published: 8:47 am, May 8th, 2021 - 34 comments
Yesterday Minister of Labour Michael Wood led the announcement of a policy that conceivably could do more to address the decline in workers wages and conditions over the past 40 years than anything else tried recently.
Written By: - Date published: 7:40 am, May 6th, 2021 - 45 comments
A few of us on the left have issues with the public service wage freeze announced yesterday. By setting the salary level so low, at $60,000 per annum, the threat is that previous gains for teachers and nurses will be undermined.
Written By: - Date published: 8:20 pm, May 5th, 2021 - 67 comments
Written By: - Date published: 10:21 am, May 4th, 2021 - 67 comments
Last weekend Judith Collins spoke to the Northern Regional Conference of the National Party and gave as crude an analysis of te Tiriti as you can imagine.
Written By: - Date published: 7:44 am, May 3rd, 2021 - 58 comments
Some good news from over the weekend. Labour is planning to significantly increase the level of Jobseeker benefit.
Written By: - Date published: 10:04 am, May 1st, 2021 - 48 comments
David Seymour has got himself into a little bit of trouble. He filed a Parliamentary Pecuniary interests return that was not, ahem, correct.
Written By: - Date published: 7:33 am, April 29th, 2021 - 20 comments
It was only a matter of time. Tova O’Brien at Newshub has been leaked a copy of the abridged version of the National Party election review.
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