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The other day I wrote: I reckon we probably will see a passing reference to the ‘underclass' for appearance's sake [in John Key's statement to Parliament] but I'm just as sure that his government will continue to fail the most vulnerable members of our society.…
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Minister of Justice Simon Power has unfortunately decided to completely ignore recommendations made by the Law Commission on drug reform. This is an unfortunate missed opportunity. I absolutely agree with David Farrar who says: Simon Power must have a very sore kneecap after what was…
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The best political commentary these days doesn't come from the political journalists. As Zetetic shows, they have turned themselves into government minders. But there are others who tell it like it is. Such as Karlo Mila in today's DomPost. The article was headed up "If…
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It turns out that the silly 'no-one owns it' option for the foreshore and seabed is John Key's 'elegant solution'. Here he is defending the proposal: "It is a concept where you don't get into the emotional debate of ownership. Now it sounds a bit foreign…
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This is a fast way to get my blood boiling. Rodney Hide as minister of local government has removed protection from the Waitakere ranges. It is time to make the Act party extinct rather than merely being on the endangered species list. The Waitakere ranges…
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In chronological order: John Key: "[I never promised I wouldn't raise GST]. I said I would not raise GST to cover deficits, and we are not doing so." Guyon Espiner: "he would have been better of just saying 'look, times have changed and GST is…
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Paying a person doing the same work as another person less money because of their sex or religion or ethnicity or any other grounds prohibited under the Human Rights Act is illegal and abhorrent. Yet, the Right wants to do just that with a private member's bill…
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Open mike is your post. It's open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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Campaign for a living wage is protesting the offices of National MPs this Saturday to protest increases in GST and the miserly increase in the minimum wage. The protest is part of Unite union's campaign to force a referendum on raising the minimum wage to…
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Enough of all of this politics. Lets look at something that is more mysterious than the hole that John Key is digging for his political future. Why in the hell is "milk bottle" one of the most frequent search terms for this site? Looking at…
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Over the last month or so National's pollster David Farrar has been running a series of posts desperately trying to pin the spike in youth unemployment under National to Labour's decision to abolish youth rates. I'd been wondering why the obsession with youth rates until…
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Twenty years ago, on 11 February 1990, after 27 years of incarceration, Nelson Mandela walked out of Victor Verster prison on a hot Sunday afternoon. And history changed. Justice Malala provides some of his memories and observations of that day in a column in the…
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My my, things are turning quickly for John Key. We now have the first sighting of the red flag term "the beleaguered PM" in the mainstream media. Recall that in 2008 Key promised not to increase GST, and now he is proposing to do exactly…
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"Last GST hike had little impact, say tax experts" - Herald The article is about inflation but it is also true of growth. There is no evidence that increasing GST from 10% to 12.5% and cutting income taxes boosted growth. In fact, the country entered…
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The Government and the secretive Iwi Leadership Group are looking at an option where no-one owns the foreshore and seabed. It's often forgotten that the Ngati Apa case, which sparked the foreshore and seabed, contraversy was about big business. Ngati Apa wanted to have title…
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As I have mentioned before, Jeanette Fitzsimons is one of the very few members of parliament for whom I have the utmost respect. Yesterday she gave her valedictory speech, and showed us yet again what sanity, vision and compassion looks like. The core of the…
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Yesterday, Rahui Katene said the Maori Party could walk away from National if they didn't adequately compensate low and middle income people for increasing GST. Do you think it will happen? No way. Do you Tariana Turia is going to give up her Crown car and the…
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"An unscientific poll yesterday of 846 readers asking whether they would be happy to pay more GST if it meant they paid less income tax found 46.9 per cent in favour, 43.9 per cent opposed and about 8 per cent undecided." - Stuff "Unscientific poll"…
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I find it frustrating that the debate over tax concerntrates on the top rate rate, which doesn't apply to 90% of taxpayers. It's as if the Right, and many in the media, are either blind to the existance of people on normal incomes or severely…
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Topics of interest, announcements, general discussion. The usual rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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Number of jobless Kiwis = 276,000 Number of jobs plans from Key Government = 0 Key can make all the vague references to faster growth and better economic performance that he likes but while the potential and skill of over a quarter of a million…
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Apparently promises made before the election don't count. GST was different then anyway.
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John Key is hell bent on carving up our most pristine National Parks for mining. No matter what. The areas most at risk are Kahurangi and Coromandel (rumour has it that Aspiring is a decoy to soften the blow). Well, these are amazing areas that…
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John Key has indicated that the Government will lift the GST rate to 15% and remove depreciation from investment houses. According to the Tax Working Group, that'll raise $3.6 billion. That revenue will then be spent on compensation and tax cuts. First, he has promised…
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Any questions?
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Someone's noticed that during her recent Tea Party speech Palin had "Energy", "Tax," and "Lift Americans Spirits" written on her hand - she used it to crib from when questioned about Republican priorities. A spy pic from the House yesterday suggests that Key's taken a leaf…
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You'll recall that last week National spent $200,000 of taxpayer dollars on a proganda drop defending its national standards. This was a targeted exercise - 350,000 of the pamphlets were produced, enough for the parents of each primary school pupil. So, how did they know…
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Topics of interest, announcements, general discussion. The usual rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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Bernard Hickey: He had a chance to follow up all the talk of real reform to create a 'step change'. He had all the experts under the sun from inside and outside of government telling him he needed to do something. He commissioned reports. He…