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Politics

Posts on government and governence at national and local level, political parties,politicians, and political participation

Categories under Politics

Doocey is taking the piss

Written By: - Date published: 7:49 am, March 26th, 2021 - 12 comments

Private member’s bills are an important feature of Parliament.  They give all MPs the chance to change the law to address real or perceived issues and problems.  So what does National MP Matt Doocey think is the country’s most pressing problem?

The housing crisis and the Government’s response

Written By: - Date published: 9:28 am, March 25th, 2021 - 163 comments

The Government’s housing policy announcements have been attacked by the right and landlords as being an attack on rights and business, and by elements of the left for being too timid.  Which suggests that the announcements are quite well pitched.

The Australian Parliament and Women

Written By: - Date published: 12:13 pm, March 24th, 2021 - 14 comments

To understand how power and misogyny and democracy all flow from the one stinking head, one need look no further than the Australian Parliament right now.

Government announces plan to help first-home buyers maintain the housing crisis

Written By: - Date published: 10:33 am, March 23rd, 2021 - 226 comments

Labour disappoints again. Individual investment rights trump collective responsibility for people having homes.

Something big but not like that

Written By: - Date published: 7:45 am, March 23rd, 2021 - 41 comments

I am going out on a limb here but I think that Comrade Chris Trotter suggesting that Jacinda Ardern may resign as Prime Minister may be overhashed.

Covid Zeitgeist

Written By: - Date published: 12:04 pm, March 21st, 2021 - 31 comments

NZ politics needs recharging and renewal to move forward. We need more charging stations.

Boris wants more bombs

Written By: - Date published: 8:05 am, March 19th, 2021 - 50 comments

Boris Johnson has announced that the United Kingdom will increase its stockpile of nuclear weapons and open up the possibility of using weapons against non nuclear nations, despite being a signatory to various treaties that prohibit both actions being taken.

Britain’s tin-ear ’tilt’ to the Indo-Pacific

Written By: - Date published: 5:39 pm, March 18th, 2021 - 14 comments

In its new integrated defence and foreign policy strategy, Britain intends  to raise its nuclear warheads on Trident from 180 to 240. What a waste. It also intends to “tilt” to the Indo-Pacific, sending the New HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier here later in the year to give a message to China. It should read its history.

Americas Cup is New Zealand’s cup?

Written By: - Date published: 7:30 am, March 18th, 2021 - 80 comments

It appears that the Government and Auckland Council have spent $250 million on an event the organisers of which are now making plans to go overseas in pursuit of the big corporate dollars.

National and the Greens on how to solve the housing crisis

Written By: - Date published: 11:04 am, March 17th, 2021 - 71 comments

Over the past week National and the Greens have released housing policy designed to address the country’s current housing crisis.  National’s are tired and either reflect what is already happening or reinforce their doctrinal view of the world.  The Green’s proposals are more radical and reflect steps that Micky Savage and the First Labour Government took in 1935.

About the latest poll

Written By: - Date published: 8:42 pm, March 16th, 2021 - 45 comments

Media claims that Ardern’s support have peaked and are tanking are way too premature.

Remember March 15

Written By: - Date published: 2:16 pm, March 15th, 2021 - 5 comments

Today marks the second anniversary of the Christchurch Mosque shooting.

West Australia result

Written By: - Date published: 9:45 am, March 15th, 2021 - 8 comments

The weekend state elections in West Australia are a astonishing landslide. On top of nearly a 13% two party swing swing for Labour in 2017, there appears to have been about a 17% swing to Labour in the weekend election in preliminary results. The Liberals are likely to be left with just 2 seats in a 59 seat Assembly. The main opposition party, now the National party, with 3 seats.  

Women and male violence

Written By: - Date published: 6:10 am, March 15th, 2021 - 37 comments

Sarah Everard’s death has been a touchpaper that has ignited the ever present anger in women at having to live in a world that is fundamentally unsafe for us simply on the basis of our sex.

“Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of happiness”. (UBI Series)

Written By: - Date published: 6:04 am, March 14th, 2021 - 49 comments

I believe, as our first Labour Government did, that everyone has the right “to a life” regardless of their perceived ,”value”.

In our country, with its excess of resources and capability, we have no excuse for poverty.

For leaving people behind.

The Unbearable Lightness of the Bright-Line Test

Written By: - Date published: 4:20 pm, March 13th, 2021 - 96 comments

The bright-line test is a red herring and does nothing to deter housing speculation.

Much ado about nothing

Written By: - Date published: 8:39 am, March 13th, 2021 - 18 comments

Chris Bishop is claiming credit for Labour finishing a deal whereby the party rented premises to Parliamentary Services for the use of Gillian Anderson MP at a level well below market rates.

You have 30 min to get your business in order!

Written By: - Date published: 12:50 pm, March 12th, 2021 - 77 comments

Government should have announced the decision for Auckland to go down to Level 1 first thing this morning.

The trans Tasman bubble

Written By: - Date published: 7:31 am, March 11th, 2021 - 72 comments

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has said New Zealanders have an unfettered ability to travel to Australia for a holiday.  Reality would suggest that he is wrong.

Water Rights War Brewing

Written By: - Date published: 3:30 pm, March 10th, 2021 - 6 comments

Minister Parker is firing an 18 inch gun round that he’s ready to take on all with his call-in of the Otago water rights plan change.

Disunity, leaks, and poor behaviour

Written By: - Date published: 7:35 am, March 10th, 2021 - 27 comments

National’s review of its 2020 election performance has been completed.  And as an indication of the level of faith existing in the party MPs may not be given their own copy.

She might have saved us from Covid but she does not drink beer with Soper

Written By: - Date published: 7:45 am, March 9th, 2021 - 99 comments

Newstalk ZB, Mike Hosking and Barry Soper are shocked, I tell you, shocked that Jacinda Ardern will no longer regularly appear on the Mike Hosking show.

National is focused on the issues that matter to Kiwis

Written By: - Date published: 9:22 am, March 7th, 2021 - 39 comments

National MP Barbara Kuriger has seized on the decision of the owners of Dr Seuss’s copyright to discontinue the printing of six Dr Seuss books with questionable content as evidence of cancel culture and has misrepresented which books are being discontinued.

UBI experiment success

Written By: - Date published: 11:11 am, March 6th, 2021 - 46 comments

A newly published report in the United States on a two year UBI trial shows remarkable results. Is such a trial possible in New Zealand?

Sugar is evil

Written By: - Date published: 9:18 am, March 6th, 2021 - 20 comments

With the recent High Court trial brought by three academics highlighting the undeserved attacks on their reputations by entities associated with the food industry now having concluded it is time for the Government to think about banning sugary drinks from schools.  And a sugar tax.

Biden can reset with China

Written By: - Date published: 10:36 am, March 5th, 2021 - 43 comments

New Zealand should resist China’s authoritarian ways, and U.S. President Biden should too. But it’s all in how he does it.

Dirty politics denouement

Written By: - Date published: 10:27 am, March 4th, 2021 - 29 comments

Another chapter of dirty politics has reached its conclusion with Carrick Graham offering an abject apology to Doug Sellman, Boyd Swinburn and Shane Bradbook for smearing their reputation via the Whaleoil website.

Senior Business Leaders Call Out To Government. Again

Written By: - Date published: 8:12 am, March 3rd, 2021 - 41 comments

Senior business leaders have called for more openness and clarity from the Government on its plan for getting New Zealand to “COVID normal”.  But have failed to say what they would do to contribute or what they are doing to help.

Amandla …

Written By: - Date published: 9:07 am, February 26th, 2021 - 5 comments

David Seymour and Act have likened the institutional suppression of people based on the colour of their skin with a desire to ensure local government representation for Tangata Whenua.

The case for mandatory legislative review

Written By: - Date published: 9:12 am, February 24th, 2021 - 15 comments

You can’t read legislation for very long without finding instances of weird edge cases. But is also why we have kids trying to walk or bike on gravel roads with no sidewalks to get to school. When modern cars travel these narrow lanes at up to 100km/hour. Parliament has no systematic way to review obsolete legislation.

Who’s the wokester?

Written By: - Date published: 7:57 am, February 24th, 2021 - 41 comments

Simon Bridges has repeated claims that Police Commissioner Andy Coster is “wokester” and has underlined how weak National’s caucus discipline is.