Written By: - Date published: 7:21 am, September 29th, 2017 - 13 comments
The Winston Peters interregnum provides New Zealand with the opportunity to work out what are core values and what can be the subject of compromise.
Written By: - Date published: 7:03 am, September 28th, 2017 - 24 comments
A significant and positive development late yesterday. Labour held firm on the Māori seats, and Peters has decided that a referendum is probably not a bottom line after all. This early progress bodes well for future negotiations.
Written By: - Date published: 8:37 am, September 27th, 2017 - 116 comments
During the election campaign elements of the farming community protested the possibility of a water tax and of farming being in the ETS on the basis the sector could not afford it. In awkward news it has since come to light that the Chief Executive of Fonterra and senior executives are being paid huge salaries.
Written By: - Date published: 7:02 am, September 27th, 2017 - 170 comments
Peters campaigned hard against the Nats, and for a change in government (check out the speech and video). To keep faith with democracy and with his party members he has to go with Labour Green (check out the feedback and polls). If Peters goes the other way NZF will implode.
Written By: - Date published: 7:27 am, September 26th, 2017 - 127 comments
What she did wasn’t a mistake.
Written By: - Date published: 6:23 am, September 26th, 2017 - 84 comments
Peters has hardly cleared his throat yet and he’s already clearing out Nats and their proxies. Seymour, Eagleson, Carter – Peters won’t be stopping there. Bill English will agree to anything to cling to power. Peters is already enjoying humiliating him in public.
Written By: - Date published: 4:36 pm, September 25th, 2017 - 178 comments
Labour didn’t deserve to win on Saturday because, firstly, because it failed to bring a fully-fleshed tax policy to voters, and, secondly, it never attempted to win the ideological battle over tax. To succeed at the next election, Labour must begin work today to frame this debate.
Written By: - Date published: 4:02 pm, September 25th, 2017 - 45 comments
“Its not going to be a comfortable term. But it will probably be an exciting one.”
Written By: - Date published: 7:02 am, September 25th, 2017 - 172 comments
The Nats lost this election. It was a vote for change. NZF party members are calling on Peters to do the right thing.
Written By: - Date published: 4:59 pm, September 24th, 2017 - 66 comments
Some analysis of where the increase in party vote for Labour occurred.
Written By: - Date published: 12:45 pm, September 24th, 2017 - 55 comments
The political reputation of NZ First as being a one man band. It isn’t. It is a real political party with the classic volatile mixture of members, supporters, candidates and MPs, plus undercurrents of factionalism. They will take some time to negotiate how they should negotiate and with whom.
Written By: - Date published: 11:55 am, September 24th, 2017 - 153 comments
Some post election thoughts on what James Shaw said last night, what the post-election options are, and that given the Left got a possible reprieve not an outright win, what are we going to do next?
Written By: - Date published: 9:17 am, September 24th, 2017 - 44 comments
The fact that we could even hope for a Labour Green win is remarkable – was inconceivable just 2 months ago. Labour’s surge has been incredible. Thank you Jacinda Ardern, and thank you all who worked so hard! Now it’s up to MMP…
Written By: - Date published: 11:48 pm, September 22nd, 2017 - 4 comments
National do a last ditch dirty politics effort. A few hours before it becomes impossible for anyone to refute this, Tracey Watkins publishes an opinion piece which sounds like the usual National BillShit. Another cynical lie designed to stop the horses from thinking rationally when they vote. This time it is a lie about things that the Greens can’t do – not without going to members. Who aren’t going to go for it.
Written By: - Date published: 4:39 pm, September 22nd, 2017 - 9 comments
The final election pitches – Ardern inspires – English in a hole.
If you haven’t voted already – vote wisely tomorrow!
Written By: - Date published: 7:33 am, September 22nd, 2017 - 25 comments
Who I am going to vote for and why.
Written By: - Date published: 12:36 pm, September 21st, 2017 - 39 comments
Salmond “Jacindamania isn’t about personality at all – it’s a collective sigh of relief that we might finally have a kind of leadership that reflects our core values as New Zealanders.”
Written By: - Date published: 9:46 am, September 21st, 2017 - 44 comments
National has created the perception that it is a better manager of Government than Labour and is suggesting that it is more compassionate. Neither claim is true.
Written By: - Date published: 7:02 am, September 21st, 2017 - 72 comments
Ardern’s jab that English “discovered poverty last week” was the line of the debate. After the election National will forget it again just as quickly, if the record of the last nine years is anything to go by. Do you want to vote for that?
Written By: - Date published: 6:38 am, September 20th, 2017 - 53 comments
Sure would be good if some other media called the Nats out on this too.
Written By: - Date published: 11:25 pm, September 18th, 2017 - 49 comments
Apart from the usual election year rise of the readership, the demographics on this site have been moving a lot earlier this election. The most noticeable statistic in the recent months has been to do with gender. Most of it appears to me to have been associated with female interest in Metiria Turei. There is a lot more interest by women in this election than in 2014.
Written By: - Date published: 8:47 am, September 18th, 2017 - 55 comments
It is difficult to understand National’s election campaign. Instead of campaigning on what they have achieved and what they plan to do they are using fear of Labour to try and win the election. And saying some palpably untrue things on the way.
Written By: - Date published: 6:25 am, September 18th, 2017 - 10 comments
If you can do one thing help New Zealand make the right choice for the future it is this – get out the young vote!
Written By: - Date published: 12:23 am, September 17th, 2017 - 73 comments
Great read in London today – full page Guardian article headlined “I’ve got what it takes, says the charismatic Labour leader taking New Zealand by storm.” Send it far and wide.
Written By: - Date published: 12:27 pm, September 16th, 2017 - 45 comments
John Armstrong has come out in the Herald swinging wildly and claiming without evidence that Jacinda Ardern’s campaign has stalled, and criticized her policy positions but because he thinks they are only a bit better than National’s.
Written By: - Date published: 8:26 am, September 16th, 2017 - 8 comments
A guest post by @invisiphilia on the recent Mahinarangi Forbes interview on the Hui on the abuse of children in foster care and why the Government is wrong in refusing to have a proper independent inquiry into what went wrong.
Written By: - Date published: 6:45 am, September 16th, 2017 - 38 comments
Watch Jacinda Ardern on the Nats’ nasty negative campaign – and the huge problems for New Zealand that they want to distract you from.
Written By: - Date published: 6:25 am, September 16th, 2017 - 20 comments
Saturday 16 Sept 2.30pm, Otara Town Centre, South Auckland. Let’s all come together to rally for our communities that have been at the forefront on the fight to end poverty.
Written By: - Date published: 9:57 am, September 15th, 2017 - 26 comments
In a case of extraordinarily bad timing for National it has been confirmed that despite claims to the contrary MFAT never provided National legal advice about the merits of any possible claim made concerning New Zealand’s banning of live sheep exports.
Written By: - Date published: 7:16 am, September 15th, 2017 - 24 comments
Peters’ major election interview is a mess of epic proportions, and NZF’s own Pauline Hanson makes an iwi/kiwi speech.
Written By: - Date published: 8:29 am, September 14th, 2017 - 283 comments
Tax is emerging as the big issue of this campaign. How valid are National’s claims that Labour will introduce a variety of new taxes and what has National’s record been like? Update: in a smart tactical move Labour has promised no new taxes will be introduced until after the next election.
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