LabourHQ: Election Update 1
Fraser House has sent out a email with some of the details about the process for the NZLP’s leadership votes. Electronic option!
The list of the meetings is appended at the end.
Some gentle advice for Labour peeps
The contest for the leadership of the Labour party heralds a new era of democracy for the Labour party, and for New Zealand, and people are quite rightly excited about it.
As I’ve said before, this is a great opportunity to bring unity to the party and to get a head-start on the election campaign.
Is high-fiving schoolgirls a parliamentary purpose?
It’s all drama today as Patrick Gower discovers that Labour’s leadership candidates are using their parliamentary flight allowance for the debates. As if selecting the leader of a parliamentary party isn’t a parliamentary purpose. If you’re going to play crusader, Mr Gower, how about looking at how much of John Key’s $650,000 travel budget goes on trips to high-five schoolgirls or play in toy boats?
Safety Video Needed For Air NZ Staff
I have been reading through the submissions released to date on the Employment Relations Act Amendment Bill. Air New Zealand take the prize […]
Smell the fear
John Key claims he doesn’t care who becomes the next parliamentary Labour leader, while trying to drive a wedge between candidates. As Cunliffe gains momentum, Key turns negative on Cunliffe & throws some stones in his glass house. Gordon Campbell puts things in perspective.
War on the poor: flexible super
Dunne’s proposal for flexible superannuation is a U-Turn for Key, while he hides behind it being a Dunne and flexible initiative & good for low income people. Sue Bradford argues against Dunne’s initiative, saying it will benefit those on higher incomes. She prefers better and universal benefits.
The least popular weasel wins
In the odd moments that I have to view and write about politics outside NZ at present, I happened upon a Wall Street […]
The union vote
The Right has been doing a massive amount of speculation on the Labour leadership race. The Right’s latest theory is that the unions will use their votes to choose the leader. That ignores a rather important fact. The unions’ votes will be decided by delegates and individual members. No-one is in a position to promise those votes to any contender.
Open mike 27/08/2013
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
David Cunliffe enters the leadership race
As anticipated David Cunliffe has announced that he is entering into the race for Labour’s leadership. Let the contest begin!
The momentum of expectation….
[Update] Surrounded by women, especially Pasifika women, Cunliffe announced he is standing for Labour leader. Iain Lees Galloway and Nanaia Mahuta signed the nomination forms. Report from New Lynn: photos added – Cunliffe answers some questions.
Why singing in harmony pays in STV
There is a reason for candidates in single transferable vote elections to sing in harmony. It has to do with the effect of second preference votes.
This probably explains the remarkable singing in harmony of Grant Robertson and Shane Jones this morning.
Besides it provides a nice simple story for the rising jonolists in the media.
Shane Jones the smoko room candidate
Shane Jones has announced his candidacy for the Labour leadership and has promised to take his campaign to the smoko rooms of the country.
Liar
Nearly 60% of New Zealanders think John Key is a liar according to the latest Fairfax-Ipsos poll. That shouldn’t be surprising given the number of times he’s been caught out being less than honest
Open mike 26/08/2013
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Robertson throws his hat in the ring
For me, Grant Robertson’s move late on Sunday afternoon to declare that he will run for the Labour leadership shows that he has chops as an operator. Likewise, the swiftness with which he moved to hold a press conference after Shearer quit. But is being a good operator enough? Or does Labour need a leader that can communicate a real Labour vision?
Grant Robertson announces his candidacy
Grant Robertson is the first Labour MP to announce that he is seeking the leadership of the Labour Party.
Time out
I’ll probably be back at some point, hopefully next year, to see Labour under a new leader win the election.
Solidarity forever …
Labour activists want a united Labour Caucus that focusses on the issues that matter. For the sake of the party we need to have a good humored leadership contest and then unity.
1938 15
A Sunday feature – each week a random section scanned from a copy of The Standard, September 15th, 1938. Find out more here.
Open mike 25/08/2013
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Fukushima
Meanwhile back in the real world, the nuclear disaster at Fukushima is creeping back in to the headlines, for all the wrong reasons.
Our Jen on the Nation
Standard author and all around good leftie Jenny Michie will be appearing on the Nation this morning to discuss the Labour leadership.
Update: the interview’s not on the web until tomorrow but there are a couple of grabs from it in this story
Poverty Watch 45
Welcome to Poverty Watch, a weekly update on National’s lack of response to the urgent and growing issue of poverty in NZ. This week, Auckland’s beggar ban. What sort of country are we?
Deal or no deal?
There’s a lot of speculation about whether a deal is being put together to find a single ticket for the Labour leadership, but I don’t think that’s likely at all.
Open mike 24/08/2013
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Eligibility to vote in Labour’s leadership election process
Has your Labour Party membership lapsed because you forgot to pay your membership fee or were upset? Do not despair. You may still be able to rejoin and have a vote in the leadership election process if you meet the criteria.
Congrats to Kristine Bartlett & SFWU
The Employment Court has issued a preliminary ruling on caregivers pay – saying that their pay should be compared to what it would […]
Weekend social 23/08/2013
Weekend social is for non political chat. What’s on for the weekend, gigs, film or book reviews, sports, or whatever. No politics, no […]
A contest
There seems to be a desire from political correspondents for a Labour stitch-up. Vernon Small wonders whether this might cause a revolt from members – and fair enough too, we want our say!
Why I electorate vote Cunliffe: op ed
I wasn’t going to express my opinion on the upcoming Labour leadership selection process. However, the usual right leaning MSM hacks seem to have been following the current Labour caucus leadership in naming Robertson as the frontrunner. This is my op ed testimony for my frontrunner, the MP for my electorate: Cunliffe.
Losing your job
David Shearer is not the only one to lose his job this month. It’s quite a list, when you add it up…
Choose wisely
I’m sure we’ll be doing comparisons between the candidates for the Labour leadership in the coming days. Any of the really contenders would at least be credible and a credible PM is the thing Labour has been lacking. What I would caution against is listening to Espiner/Garner/Gower fantasy candidate – Jones. Those same guys said ‘choose Shearer’ and Labour listened.
GCSB & TICS
There will be plenty of coverage of the Labour leadership process here on The Standard, I don’t feel any need to contribute. There are too many other important matters that mustn’t fall under the radar. You thought the GCSB spying Bill was bad? The TICS bill is worse.
Open mike 23/08/2013
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Time to renew – by midnight
The word is that the NZ Council decided tonight when they will cut off the memberships which are current for voting in the membership vote on the leadership primaries.
The deadline is at midnight tonight.