National is obviously worried. The headline policies from the budget are those which a Labour Government would normally be associated with. Increasing paid parental leave to 18 weeks, funding for free doctors' visits for young adolescents and funds for Kauri dieback disease research are policies…
You could tell it was coming. When, about two days out from the Budget, English started trying to downplay expectations, you knew there wasn't enough in it. He had realised that people expect too much politically from National. He had wanted this Budget to be…
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike ...
I am in the process of watching the videos of Glenn Greenwald, as interviewed on Democracy Now about his new book No Place to Hide. It's posted on the Daily Blog by Selwyn Manning. I am in the middle of the first video. It's mind…
Within the next few hours the government will be voting on their Paid Parental Leave bill. Labour's response is a Supplementary Order Paper. If the ammendment passes it will mean the government will have to commit to Labour's policy of 26 weeks leave. But of…
Rob Salmond at Polity on the budget. Earlier this week I predicted the Budget would be Labour-lite. I was right, but only in part. Extending PPL, more money for ECE, and extending free doctor visits for more kids are all good ideas. But in other…
A tiny surplus. After six years. And how much does New Zealand owe six years later? That's right Seventy Five Billion Dollars. Mayby it should be you that apologises, John.
On May 1, 2014 the New Zealand Herald reported on a complaint that Denis O'Rourke had through Parliamentary Services employed his live in partner to be his assistant. He denied the allegation and at this time no further action is being taken about the complaint. Today the…
The real story of the coming election is neither corruption nor perceptions of corruption but rather what was revealed in Bill English’s reported pre-budget speech to the National Party’s Southern Region conference at the weekend. He signalled an intention to reduce the proportion of government…
John Key is nothing but an optimist. After delivering five successive deficit budgets and having driven core crown gross debt from $31 billion to a forecast $82 billion and despite in all likelihood delivering a wafer thin surplus that will rely on the stretching to…
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike ...
National Party pollster David Farrar must be seeing some numbers he really doesn't like because he's veered off on another weird attack on David Cunliffe. This time he's falsely claiming Cunliffe's photoshopped himself into an event he didn't attend. The slight problem with Farrar's breathless…
Russel Norman and David Cunliffe have asked about John Key's government's record in Question Time today. They referred to this census evidence, as reported on RNZ, that the inequality gap on NZ is growing. In 2006, the median income for someone in the Orakei area,…
Moira Coatsworth recently announced that last year's party membership was the greatest in 30 years - that is, it is higher than even before the 4th Labour Government did such damage to membership numbers. This is a sign of rude health. Media commentators (I'm looking…
As has been (long) anticipated under current conditions the West Antarctic Ice Sheet will melt with a more than average 3 metre rise in world sea levels. The only remaining question is how long it will take to melt. No Right Turn explains the slowly…
Rob Salmond at Polity points out the extraordinary way that the speaker let John Key get away with lying to parliament Last week, struggling to defend Judith Collins' meddling in an official trip to get private gain for Oravida,John Key told Parliament: The [MFAT] paperwork shows right…
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike ...
David Cunliffe will be online after 5:30pm today to clarify any points people care to raise. The comments will be fully moderated. Check the rules below before commenting. This is Budget week and the government is already trying to tell us that the measure of…
It's 4 months to the election, the election year budget, and political parties are in full sledging mode. John Key will throw out some ridiculous spin / outright lies, so we can expect journalists to challenge that right? Provide some balance, clarifications around what they've…
This morning the Green Party will do a pre-budget economic policy launch live on line: livestream here 11am 11.30am - 12.30pm. [Edit: my mistake - got the start time wrong] While relatively low key, this is an innovative approach to a policy launch. However, they…
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike ...
A really nice piece from Campbell Live tonight. It's useful to see the leaders of political parties at home. It gives a better sense of who they are than the stage-managed set pieces and soundbites we usually see them though. And from the Campell Live…
Rob Salmond points to the reality of the to different approaches to the economy. Labour looks at increasing jobs, wage growth, and having the government run surpluses. National looks at a 1% wage growth after inflation after years of falling real wages and no drop…
No Right Turn shows that John Key has no real understanding of the economic and political history of this country. Probably because the last time another economic illiterate from National said that the prospect of reducing unemployment in NZ to below 6% was "a hoax",…
Update: Due to a communications failure, this has been rescheduled for Tuesday evening. David Cunliffe will taking some time to write a post and engage on comments about it tomorrow evening. The topic will be about David's "vision for New Zealand and how we get…
When luck is running against you it is running against you. John Key yesterday was filmed handing out free sausages from a National branded stall. It appears that the effort has hit a bit of a snarler however and the PR effort has left the…
I guess I'm not the only person on these pages who looks on Mother's Day as so much sentimental, commercial junk. I've been of the persuasion that the roots of Mother's Day lay in some religious commemoration that had been gazumped by commercial opportunities. That's…
Judith Collins has her back against the wall. Weeks of intense scrutiny finally took its toll which culminated in her crazy attack of journalists last week. And the very last thing John Key wants in the lead up to the election is a damaged relationship…
Last night 3 News picked up on the information provided from an OIA request by Phil Tywford. It shows that Key's government is planning to sell off a significant number of state houses in provincial locations. Many of these houses have been empty for way…