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Despite being remarkably quiet throughout a spate of serious police controversies, Police Minister Judith Collins has finally risen to the challenge of leadership over the so-called Boy Racer issue. Collins has suggested crushing the impounded cars of those deemed to be acting like 'Boy Racers'…
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National's excuse for illegally* failing to complete the annual review of the minimum wage is that it wants to ensure any increase doesn't cost jobs. So, it seems pertanent to ask, does raising the minimum wage result in job losses? Every year, the Department of…
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Over the past few weeks, I and many others have been shocked by the sudden, appalling change in John Armstrong's writing. Having long been, in my estimation, our best print political commentator, Armstrong has suddenly become confused, nonsensical, and reactionary. The man reads like a…
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The stage has often been the realm where society holds itself up for examination and consideration, but who amongst us would have picked Mary Poppins as a tale for our times? According to Harold Evans of the Guardian "the tale of the twinkly-eyed nanny is…
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So Cabinet has deferred its decision on the minimum with John Key simply promising "it won't be very far away at all". Now that's just shoddy. In tough economic times we need strong government leadership. Now is the time for certainty and action, it's not…
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Well it may not have been particularly self-evident just what National have been doing since the election, but clearly John has some kind of plan. The TradeMe auction of Key's arm cast, acquired after an inauspicious Chinese New Year trip, has begun. Worried perhaps that the…
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Roger Kerr from the Business Roundtable is full of advice for the Government's upcoming jobs summit in today's Dom Post. Which is unfortunate for Rog', because according to my sources he won't be getting an invite. Neither will Alasdair Thompson, the mildly unhinged chief executive…
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I have a crime to report. Someone has kidnapped one of our most insightful journos and replaced them with an illiterate wowser. How else to explain writing an article called "Collins must collar rising tide of crime " when any journalist with a modicum of…
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Dread Times, a new blog by former Green MP Nandor Tanczos. Hat tip: No Right Turn.
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The Sunday-Star Times has an article on National's proposed RMA changes. Unfortunately, it's just Nick Smith describing the changes. And, surprise, he doesn't mention changing the definition of environment, the crucial change (we discuss the consequences of the change here). Fortunately, it's all online here. You…
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Today, Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson will be presenting a paper to her Cabinet colleagues regarding the minimum wage. The Department of Labour recommended a fifty cent an hour increase. Word is, Kate Wilkinson will be recommending no change. But John Key was forced to commit…
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Labour got a fair amount of mileage during the election campaign out of harassing National about its lack of distinct policy. I guess that's kind of forgivable of National in some ways, for reasons we won't go in to again. But now National are in…
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The New Republic has a good article on Keynes that points out the tendency for governments (specifically in the US) to flock toward Keynesianism during the bad times and ignore it when things pick up and to implement the facets of Keynesianism that suited their…
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In 2007 Te Ata Tino Toa applied to Tranzit New Zealand to have the Maori Sovereignty flag flown on the Auckland Harbour Bridge on Waitangi Day. Tranzit declined permission on the grounds that it wasn't a UN recognized national flag, despite having previously flown the…
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Nicked from the Hand Mirror, who got the story from No Right Turn - hattips all round: Next week Iceland's going to get not only it's first female Prime Minister, but also the first openly homosexual leader in the world. And apparently the Icelanders are…
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Last night, I heard something worrying. It was Gareth Morgan saying he can't 'see through' this recession; that he can't see the economic mechanism that will turn things around and get us growing again. He had already dismissed interest rate slashing and stimulus packages as…
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Last year, we had The Standard Week as a regular feature on a Friday. We might resurrect that if there is popular demand but, first, I've been talking with some of the others and we want to try out a new Friday feature . Every week…
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Our economy depends on other key resources apart from oil. For instance our farming sector still depends heavily on using phosphates to increase soil fertility. Since our farming sector provides at more than half of the export income, it got a little disturbing to read…
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I see that over at Kiwiblog DPF is hawking an Air New Zealand viral advertisement. Now DPF has had at least one junket from Air NZ and the airline is well known for its gifts to journalists and media outlets (mostly in terms of free…
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I attended the Pacific Islands Forum in Fiji back in 2006. The shadow of Bainimarama's approaching coup hung over the forum but it wasn't enough to quell the heat as we sat in our ridiculously ill-suited suits through endless, pointless meetings. Nothing was achieved and…
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Despite very serious allegations from former Sanlu CEO Tian Wenhua that an unnamed Fonterra board member influenced her decision to not cease production of milk powder known to be contaminated, on RNZ's Checkpoint Fonterra Chairman Henry van der Hayden was adamant Fonterra would not be disclosing documentation…
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In response to U.S. President Barack Obama's review of the proposed U.S. missile defence system in Eastern Europe, Russia is scrapping plans to deploy nuclear capable Iskander missiles in Kaliningrad, just north of Poland. The Guardian reports: Obama has not yet decided whether to press…
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Another review of the Official Cash Rate, another record cut. This time, it's a 1.5% cut bringing the OCR to 3.5%. That's the lowest rate since the OCR was introduced in 1999. Good news for those with floating rate mortgages (not so good for the 80% of mortgagees…
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Surprise, surprise, it's Garth George. "The economic situation is without a doubt the most urgent of predicaments to be dealt with, but so far this year all John Key and Co have offered is a talkfest scheduled for next month. Now we all know that…
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Word is Tony Ryall is feeling a bit burned over the herceptin funding. Turns out the private specialists needed to administer the treatment are going to cost a wee bit more than he expected. That's right, the scheme has been locked into legislation without being…
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Jordan Carter's long-running Just Left has become a group blog with several new contributors. Jordan explains: The logic is simple. Some of the best blogs and spots of political writing out there now (Hand Mirror, Pundit, PublicAddress, The Standard) are sites with more than one…
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Danyl at The Dim-Post has been indulging in his favored pastime again - satire. In this case Cabinet expresses concern over missing PM is about John Key going missing all of the time. Danyl compares him to a pooch avoiding something... Finance Minister Bill English…
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Parents around the country are counting down the days until school starts for the year - but for some the NZHerald had some alarming news, stating "cuts in government funding [from MSD]could force 24 after-school care programmes run by Kidicorp to close....The after-school School's Out…
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Today on Radio NZ, Health Minister Tony Ryall's razor gang for the health sector was discussed. One of its proponents argued there was bound to be bureaucrats to cut, problem is there is insufficient measurement of productivity. He said Stats NZ should invest in measuring…
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"It's important that I get an Australian perspective on the unfolding international economic situation, particularly the impact of a slowdown in China and Asia," Mr English said. It's a little concerning that this is the man charged with avoiding redundancies.