Three of the four member’s bills drawn yesterday were sponsored by Labour leaders. What followed was one of the most disgusting maneuvers ever pulled by this government, justifying the headline – Nats play politics while Kiwi kids die in homes.
Christine Fletcher has penned an open letter to Phil Goff where she criticises in trenchant terms super city’s current performance and offers some thoughts on where improvement can be made.
The High Court recently found that Government and Tim Groser improperly considered Prof. Jane Kelsey’s application for information concerning the TPPA negotiations. The Nats aren’t happy. The Ombudsman isn’t happy. Tough.
The Government books have hit surplus. But it looks like treatment of the financials for the Canterbury Earthquake may account for pretty well all of it. Update: Underspending on special education accounts for much of the “surplus”.
We need a welfare system that acknowledges the realities of cancer and other major medical conditions. That isn’t “special treatment”, it is basic human decency.
Radio New Zealand has reported that Paul Rebstock, chair of the Government appointed committee engaged in the review of Child Youth and Family, is being paid $2,000 a day to perform her job. This is the equivalent to the daily pay of thirteen social workers.
Helen Kelly calls for the government “to get real about medicinal cannabis”. Seriously – what are we waiting for?
Turns out the Education Minister overrode Ministry advice to protect National’s pet charter schools from being evaluated on their actual outcomes. Plus a bonus side order of hypocrisy on class sizes.
When Catherine Isaac (wife of Roger Kerr (deceased) of the former Business Round-table and ACT party stalwart) is at odds with Parata, something must be amiss.
If this report is accurate it opens an interesting can of worms!
The TPPA has been agreed to. Dairy access improvement is minimal, there will be a cost hit on Pharmac and every industry but Tobacco will be able to access the investor state dispute resolution procedure.
Hekia Parata has announced that student achievement and not need caused by poverty will be a central part of any future funding system.
The TPPA is said to be close to being concluded with resistance to change in Pharmaceutical rules being provided by Australia, not New Zealand. And John Key says that the deal isn’t a very good deal for Dairy.
From the commentator formerly known as Ad is this post where he asks the question many of us face, how do we balance jobs and careers with the desire to be left wing activists?
Parliamentary Services have marred what might otherwise have been a showcase example of how public protest is treated in New Zealand.
The White Man Behind A Desk is back, looking at the big picture, why we hate politicians, and why you need to tweet John Key.
Someone once made an art-work of a brick with some ‘guy ropes’ attached to represent the ill fated R-101 airship…
Same ole, same ole. Except, this time, US neoconservative imperalism might have a problem. Russia.
Last Friday I wrote a post on Volkwagen gaming NOx emissions. This is a follow up.
I/S at No Right Turn on the Crown’s apparent bungling of the Dotcom extradition case – and the potential cost to NZ.
Peter Dunne doesn’t hold back in his assessment of the craven foreign policy – that is the creation of his government.
National’s announced intention to create a marine sanctuary around the Kermadec Islands looks remarkably like Labour’s policy from the last election. And why did John Key not tell his caucus beforehand?
There is hope that the cumulative effect of all the international pledges for the Paris climate change conference may buy the world some time to prevent runaway global warming. Some countries are pledging to becoming carbon neutral. New Zealand’s pledge is pathetically weak in comparison.
Christianity doesn’t compromise with other religions or has the World Finally Gone madder?
Greenpeace, 350 Aotearoa and the Coal Action Network have jointly urged John Key not to send Tim Groser to Paris for the climate change talks because the Government’s policies and proposed response will embarrass New Zealand and damage its international reputation.
The Rebstock Panel inquiry could be read to confirm that Child Youth and Family is unable to perform its job properly because of it is not properly resourced to provide the job. But it is clear that National is loathe to provide it with any more resources. And the elephant in the room is that the Government fails to understand that escalating child poverty is the cause the crisis.
Goff: “Judith’s column this week is the opening shot in her campaign to succeed John Key as National’s leader.”
The Nats are obsessed with the reproductive rights of those they deem “unfit”. Once again they are floating the idea of compulsory controls.
Been trying to get my head around the implications of Volkswagen’s rigged diesel performance tests. Predictably, and unlike most stories covering this, I couldn’t give a rat’s arse for the financial woes the company might be facing.
The Green’s agreement with National to allow for Red Peak to be a referendum candidate potentially helps John Key out of a major difficulty and raises issues about the state of the Labour-Green relationship.
We have passed an interesting milestone in the evolution of NZ politics. Key’s poll-driven pandering has just been taken to the next level. Political / media dinosaurs will never be able to dismiss “The Twitterati” again.
Gareth Morgan pulls no punches on the flag fiasco, and a breaking story on the Greens’ move to add Red Peak.
One News has discovered that over the past five years Housing Corporation has divested itself of 2,472 houses at the same time that the need for social housing has escalated.
OK I confess I’m only writing this post because the chance to use that title tickled my fancy. But anyway – almost 70% of us oppose changing the flag.
Twelve months on from the last election and that brighter future we were promised has not happened.
Loaded with paper and irrelevant arguments, Cameron Slater managed to add 7 counts of contempt of court to his every growing sheet of convictions. It is a pity that he doesn’t put that level of effort into the technical job of policing his site. I look at 6 of those convictions.
