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Northland Fishing Competition

Written By: te reo putake - Date published: 2:25 pm, February 11th, 2016 - 35 comments

Winston Peters has stitched John Key up again, this time hook, line and sinker. When Key lied in Parliament about the Northland MP’s supposedly leisurely lifestyle, Peters offered a challenge: provide some evidence or donate $100k to charity. Will cowardly Key take the bait?

Key booed by rugby crowd

Written By: Natwatch - Date published: 3:21 pm, February 7th, 2016 - 81 comments

Key went to the rugby on Saturday, but his grandstanding didn’t go as planned.

The Whitehead Report does not exonerate Murray McCully

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 9:28 am, February 7th, 2016 - 11 comments

The Whitehead report into the circumstances surrounding the failed waiver of diplomatic immunity for the Malaysian attache charged with sexual assault charges has been released and blames the incident on an inadvertently worded email. But questions remain about why Murray McCully only took active steps after media broke the story and the effects his reorganisation of MFAT has had on its ability to do its job.

Key’s second waitress bungle

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 7:04 am, February 3rd, 2016 - 78 comments

Key’s badly dented “political antennae” took another solid beating yesterday, with his second high-profile bungle involving a waitress.

A tale of two States of the Nation speeches

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:57 am, February 2nd, 2016 - 6 comments

The State of the Nation speeches provide an interesting start to the political year. John Key’s speech borrowed Labour Green policy that until now the Government has consistently derided and tried to present it as a “kickstart” while Andrew Little’s tertiary education policy announcement has received almost universal support and National is struggling to work out what attack lines to use.

Your Favourite Conspiracy Sucks

Written By: te reo putake - Date published: 10:50 pm, February 1st, 2016 - 198 comments

The return of the X Files has got me thinking. Just how hard is it to keep a big conspiracy secret? Happily, a British scientist has the answer; it’s bloody hard. More or less impossible, actually, according to his new formula. It seems the truth really is out there.

New Day Rising

Written By: te reo putake - Date published: 12:38 pm, January 31st, 2016 - 80 comments

Goff and Shearer’s disloyal and self serving support for the TPPA has backfired. They’ve shown that the ABC faction are now a spent force and that Andrew Little has the overwhelming support of caucus. The sun has set on the splitters and there is a new day rising.

New Zealand drops down World corruption free index

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:14 am, January 28th, 2016 - 21 comments

New Zealand used to be rated as the least corrupt country in the world. Over the past couple of years we have dropped to second and now to fourth. The cynical way that the Government handles OIA requests is the main reason for this occurring.

The great big list of John Key’s big fat lies (UPDATED)

Written By: BLiP - Date published: 7:00 am, January 27th, 2016 - 79 comments

How many more lies will John Key tell today in his so-called State of the Nation address? Virtual chocolate fish to whomever guesses the closest number.

Saudi Arabia and the free trade deal

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 10:47 am, January 6th, 2016 - 113 comments

David Shearer has disagreed with the Greens that New Zealand should suspend negotiations on the free trade agreement with Saudi Arabia until it improves its human rights record.

The great carbon credit swindle

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:47 am, January 2nd, 2016 - 56 comments

On December 17, 2015 the Government released a series reports suggesting that New Zealand is complying with Kyoto Protocol obligations. A dig into the reports confirms however that the compliance is in name only and is for spin purposes rather than a real attempt at addressing the world’s most pressing problem.

The media in 2015

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 12:25 pm, December 29th, 2015 - 88 comments

Some random musings on what happened in New Zealand’s media this year.

Treachery and silly season political snippets

Written By: BLiP - Date published: 7:41 am, December 23rd, 2015 - 61 comments

There’s still a few MPs “on duty”. Their function is to maintain the semblance of active government and to roll out a bunch of announcements they hope will escape full scrutiny.

Rachel Stewart eviscerates John Key

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 11:51 am, December 20th, 2015 - 211 comments

Rachel Stewart has penned an opinion piece highlighting John Key’s avoidance of serious media in preference to engaging in rude, crude and highly unattractive stunts on commercial radio.

Key – too far even for his fans

Written By: Natwatch - Date published: 10:47 am, December 17th, 2015 - 154 comments

While there is a certain amusement value in having a performing monkey for a PM, his participation in the great rape jape yesterday was too far even for his fans.

This Year

Written By: te reo putake - Date published: 9:35 pm, December 14th, 2015 - 38 comments

2015’s just about up. Here’s my quick summary of the year here at the Standard. Thanks y’all!

John Key is relaxed about COP21

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 3:09 pm, December 14th, 2015 - 34 comments

The Government has responded to the COP21 convention agreement with the suggestion that little will need to change. And John Key has put the likely annual cost of fulfilling our pledge at less than a tenth of the figure that Tim Groser has used.

Mopping up the fossil fuels subsidy shame

Written By: BLiP - Date published: 8:08 am, December 3rd, 2015 - 17 comments

McClay said he could not answer the specific question because he had “been advised” no such data exists.

How convenient.

Deportee

Written By: te reo putake - Date published: 12:48 pm, December 2nd, 2015 - 103 comments

Standard Exclusive:

Te Reo Putake interviews one of the first batch of deportees from Australia under the Liberal Government’s hardline approach to Kiwis who serve jail time in the lucky country.

Our man in Paris

Written By: BLiP - Date published: 9:23 am, December 2nd, 2015 - 17 comments

Some time today, New Zealand’s Prime Minister, John Key, will be wandering around the hallways of his Paris hotel in his underpants. Or maybe his swimming togs.

The great greenhouse gas research funding switcherooni

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 7:56 am, December 2nd, 2015 - 19 comments

John Key has announced an increase in funding on research into the reduction of agricultural emissions of greenhouse gasses of $20 million over four years or $5 million a year. Which is the amount the Government cut from this research two months ago.

That would explain a lot

Written By: notices and features - Date published: 9:32 am, November 18th, 2015 - 27 comments

key Czech

International shame – again

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 7:34 am, November 12th, 2015 - 64 comments

Key and Carter have brought NZ international shame yet again. Males in a position of power using rape as a cheap political tactic and then punishing women for speaking up. Brighter Future.

Len Brown stands down

Written By: notices and features - Date published: 9:14 am, November 8th, 2015 - 59 comments

Len Brown has announced that he will not contest the Auckland Mayoralty next year.

David Cunliffe on the state of the media in New Zealand

Written By: notices and features - Date published: 9:00 am, November 5th, 2015 - 111 comments

In Parliament yesterday David Cunliffe spoke about the state of the country’s Media and how in rugby terms the right have effectively screwed the scrum..

Were people smugglers paid money to take refuges away from New Zealand?

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:30 am, October 30th, 2015 - 34 comments

Amnesty International has published a report “By Hook or by Crook: Australia’s Abuse of Asylum-Seekers at Sea” which has rightfully been described as a damning indictment of Australia’s handling of the refugee crisis. But New Zealand benefitted from payments of money to people smugglers. What did the Government know?