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The RMA is a quick and cheap process in the vast majority of cases, and it is regarded as a world-leading piece of legislation. Few consent applications are refused or appealed. Reforms of the RMA over the years have made it more efficient. The studies…
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Bill English has put out a press release whingeing about Helen Clark's promise to lift wages for low-paid school support staff, and fearmongering that it might mean Michael Cullen will cancel his tax cuts. Presumably, English's statement means National would cancel the planned pay increase…
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On Breakfast this morning, failed National party candidate Paul Henry and Guyon Espiner discussed the possibility of the Maori Party and National working together in a government. Henry: Do you get the feeling National would do anything for power, they would cut almost any deal…
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Need a little respite from election madness? Utilise your keyboard to reach your desired poll result with Whack a Poll...
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Let's get serious about the idea of the Maori Party working with National. Yes, they want to play up the possibility to enhance their bargaining position, just as the Greens were last month, but it's not going to happen. National and the Maori Party voted…
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We've seen Mr Key look evasive on the topic of Lord Ashcroft, so when his name popped up in the British media over the weekend I had a closer look. It made me wonder exactly what Key and Ashcroft talked about recently - and whether there…
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We've got a range new posters and leaflets up on the Campaign Hub and we're keen to see more. Some people are printing off two different designs and making doubled-sided leaflets, which is a really good way to get two messages distributed in one go. Best…
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You probably already read him on Scoop Election '08 and he's a former Listener journalist too. The topic of his talk is: 'Covering the issues - how to escape from the who's winning, who's losing style of election coverage'. His recent article Horse race political…
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Going into business with Farrar was one thing but has Scoop now cast its lot in with National? How else to explain the 'Hollow N' National party logo that now appears when you load the site in Internet Explorer?
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Greeenwoman has done it again, another brilliant video on Key using a classic music video:
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If your annual income is over $14,000, your tax will decrease by $12 to $28 a week from Wednesday. That's a reduction of up to 26% on the income tax you pay. By 2011, people will be paying up to 31% less income tax (graphs…
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National desperately wants to portray any criticism of John Key as a personal attack. Don't be taken in. Look, PM is a powerful job. We need to have a thorough examination of anyone contesting for that role. As I've always said there are three legitimate…
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National have quietly released their policy on electoral law and have promised to abolish the Maori seats once treaty claims are finished, repeal the Electoral Finance Act and run a referendum on MMP. These all represent substantial changes to the way our democracy operates. I'll…
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I'm probably going to be at odds with my fellow Standardistas in this but I support having debates featuring just Clark and Key. One of these two people will lead the country after the election and we deserve to see to them in a forum…
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An email from a reader: "A friend and I were putting up some Vote with Both Eyes Open posters on Lambton Quay the other night. We had just put some up around the intersection by Parliament and crossed the road when a senior National advisor came…
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An article in yesterday's Herald raised some more questions over how Key has handled the management of his share portfolio. However it looks like it would be easy enough for him to clear up. According to Paula Oliver: Eyebrows were raised around Parliament this week…
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Slippery John does it again. Asked a clear question by a reporter, he lied to her face. It was only when Fran Mold revealed to Key that she knew he had owned another packet of Tranz Rail shares (purchased and sold while he was asking questions…
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There's not much more that needs to be said about the first presidental debate. McCain was stiff and boring. His framing was awful: he and Obama both said essentially the same thing on a number of issues but the reaction meter consistently showed that people…
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The more I think about it the more it seems to me that John Key's meeting with Rail America needs some more explaining. For a start these kinds of meetings don't just happen of their own accord. Rail America is based, somewhat unsurprisingly, in America.…
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A friend just sent me this Christian ska band performing "Jesus is my friend." I think it goes without saying: Once I tried to run I tried to run and hide But Jesus came and found me And he touched me down inside He is…
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Apologies for the ad on the start of this but what follows is worth seeing. (Hat-tip: Boing Boing) [lprent: removed cbs clip because it seems to be trying to install something on client machines. Replaced with a youtube video. She is an foreign policy idiot.]
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We all knew New Zealand was in recession in the first six months of this year. The official figures have confirmed this. The surprise though is on the upside. The consensus had been that the economy had shrunk 0.5% in the quarter. In fact, it was…
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I remember the first time I met Simon Power, when he had just come into Parliament. He struck me as a man who would be a future leader of National and an excellent one at that - articulate, informed, and moderate. Oh, what he has…
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We know John Key bought shares in Tranzrail on May 7 2003. We know he then met with Rail America as a representative of New Zealand's parliament on May 20, 2003. We know those shares were then sold by June 10, 2003 for a massive…
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"This may be unfair, but Key can sometimes give the impression he is being less than honest"*
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News just in: GO Wellington has lifted the lockout of its 300 bus drivers. The drivers say they are pleased the lockout is over and that they can go back to work but their campaign for a living wage will continue. This is a major…
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A reader sent in this photo from the Wellington bus drivers' picket line at the Kilbirnie bus depot. The workers are said to be staunch in their claims and are refusing to be intimidated by the company locking them out without pay. The Council of…
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Bob Clarkson chose not to speak during his valedictory speech. Instead, he just held up a sign saying 'bye bye' (in the same font as Peter's famous 'no' sign). An opportunity for both hilarity and embarrassing revelations missed. After all, this was the man who…
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Incredibly, leading rightwingers including John Key, Maurice Williamson, Lockwood Smith, Rodney Hide, and Roger Kerr still don't accept the overwhelming evidence for climate change. A cynic would say that's just because it's in their interests to engage in this wishful thinking. But maybe that's too harsh, maybe they've…