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 Lessons
from Singapore
Muriel Newman
14 May 2013
Thursday is budget day, the day when the government outlines
their economic plan for the next twelve months. It is
also a time of judgement on how well the economy has
performed over the last year.
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From
third world to first: Singapore's success
Henri
Ghesquiere
14 May 2013
Singapore
is admired for its spectacular economic success. You
touch down at the island’s ultra-mode
rn airport—routinely voted the world’s most
efficient.
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Name
changes & controversy
Muriel Newman
6 May 2013
Last
month the New Zealand Geographic Board announced that it
was opening a public consultation process to change the
names of the North and South islands of New Zealand. If
the change goes ahead...
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The
place of the Treaty of Waitangi
David
Round
6 May 2013
A
constitution is an agreement which a people has about
some fundamental things ~ about how they are to be
governed, and the principles on which they base their
government and society. It is a sort of covenant...
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Politicising
poverty
Muriel Newman
30 April 2013
In
her final speech in the House of Commons on 22 November
1990, the former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher
engaged in one of her more memorable exchanges with the
Member from Southwark and Bermondsey..
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Poor
people in rich countries – a new approach to
measurement
Kristian
Niemietz
30 April
2013
The
protest placard he held up during Baroness Thatcher’s
funeral procession made Dave Winslow a minor celebrity
for a day. It showed a gravestone with the inscription
‘Rest of us in poverty’. Several newspapers leapt at
it for their coverage...
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Sabotage
or open disclosure?
Muriel Newman
22 April 2013
Irresponsible
sabotage or keeping the market fully informed? As anyone
who has followed politics closely will know, there is no
doubt that the coincidentally
timed announcement by the Labour and Green parties...
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Climate
change and the social importance of scepticism
Roger
Bowden
22 April
2013
A
lifetime of observation and work in the social sciences
has convinced me of one thing. George Orwell was partly
wrong in his classic novel 1984.
The threats to the open society do not come from above.
They come from all around us... More >>>
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Welcome
to the future
Muriel Newman
15 April 2013
One
only needs look at the present to see what New Zealand
will be like in the future. The North Island will be
known as Te Ika a Maui, the South Island as Te
Waipounamu, and New Zealand as Aotearoa...
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Changing
an unwritten constitution
James
Allan
15 April
2013
I
am a long time believer that an unwritten constitution
of the sort you find in New Zealand today, or the United
Kingdom before it was enmeshed in the European Union, is
a very good sort of constitution indeed...
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Charities
under review
Muriel Newman
8 April 2013
According
to a survey carried out in 2010, New Zealand ranked
first equal with Australia as the world’s most
charitable nation.The World
Giving Index, published by the Charities Aid
Foundation used a Gallup survey of...
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Taxpayer subsidised charities
Dr
Michael Gousmett
8
April
2013
Many
of you will no doubt remember the Sanitarium
advertisement from the 1960s, “Kiwi kids are Weet-bix
kids.” During the long summer evenings you may
have enjoyed a glass or two of Cabernet Sauvignon from
New Zealand’s oldest winery, Mission Estate.
Down in the South Island... More >>>
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Protecting
the banking sector
Muriel Newman
2 April 2013
The banking crisis in
Cyprus is a sharp reminder to savers around the world
that banks are not necessarily as safe as they like to
imagine. The plan for a 6.75 percent tax on savings...
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Open
bank resolution
Don
Brash
1
April
2013
There
has been an astonishing amount of alarmist comment –
certainly in the “New Zealand Herald” and even on
Radio New Zealand – about the possibility that the
Reserve Bank of New Zealand could impose a
“Cypriot-type” tax on bank deposits in the event of
a bank failure... More >>>
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Race
relations
Muriel Newman
25 March 2013
It’s
not often that a government appointment ignites
controversy, but last week’s announcement that Dame
Susan Devoy was to step into the role of Race Relations
Commissioner did just that...
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Government’s
constitutional review sham
David
Round
25 March
2013
New
Zealand’s constitution is working perfectly
adequately. Nothing is broken; nothing requires fixing.
But the government, at the Maori Party’s behest,
established a 'Constitutional Advisory Panel' to
consider...
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Technology
changes democracy
Muriel Newman
18 March 2013
The
IT revolution is dramatically changing how we live, in a
way that is probably just as profound as the agrarian
and industrial revolutions of previous ages.
This new revolution has given people control over
the way...
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Newspapers lose
readers and revenue
Karl
du Fresne
17 March 2013
Something
strange happened on the road to our much-celebrated
post-industrial utopia. The real winners of the global economy
have turned out to be not the creative types or the data
junkies, but the material boys: countries...
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Have
your say on resources and fresh water
Muriel Newman
11 March 2013
A
World Bank Report published in 1998 ranked New Zealand
second in terms of ‘natural capital, behind Saudi
Arabia. However,
while we have a wealth of land, minerals, water, and
good clean air, our bureaucratic...
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The
Real Winners Of The Global Economy: The Material Boys
Joel Kotkin
11 March 2013
Something
strange happened on the road to our much-celebrated
post-industrial utopia. The real winners of the global economy
have turned out to be not the creative types or the data
junkies, but the material boys: countries...
More >>>
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Time
to end policy of appeasement
Muriel Newman
4 March 2013
The
Maori Council’s claim over the ownership of New
Zealand’s fresh water is a blatant attempt by a
powerful political group to seize control of a public
good natural resource. New Zealanders are angry about ...
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Why
electricity prices are too high
Bryan
Leyland
4 March 2013
Many
people believe that electricity prices are too high.
They find it difficult to understand why, when most of
our electricity is generated by old hydropower stations,
the price has escalated at well above the rate of
inflation since about 2002.. More >>>
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A
Census protest and a people's review
Muriel Newman
25 February 2013
Over
the last few years, there has been a growing consensus
amongst the leaders of western nations – including the
UK, Germany, France, Spain, Holland, Belgium, and
Australia - that policies and practices...
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How
should we engage with our government?
Elizabeth
Rata
25 February 2013
If
history has anything to teach us, it’s that we should
never take anything for granted. We need to be vigilant
in protecting what’s good about our society. New
Zealand has so much to be proud of. We have led the
world by... More >>>
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Money
not mana
Muriel Newman
18 February 2013
The
report by Fairfax media that Crown negotiators working
for Treaty Negotiations Minister Chris Finlayson on the
Treaty settlement process have picked up million dollar
fees shows the Treaty of Waitangi...
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What's
really going on in our schools?
Fiona
Mackenzie
18 February 2013
If
history has anything to teach us, it’s that we should
never take anything for granted. We need to be vigilant
in protecting what’s good about our society. New
Zealand has so much to be proud of...
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Extending
the term of Parliament
Muriel Newman
11 February 2013
During
last week’s discussions at Waitangi, the Prime
Minister stated that he favoured a four-year term for
Parliament and a fixed election date. Labour’s David
Shearer, the Green’s Metiria Turei, New Zealand
First’s..
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A
four-year parliamentary term?
Graeme
Edgeler
11 February 2013
The Constitutional Advisory Panel has
kicked off its public consultation efforts. One of the
issues the panel will look into is the term of
Parliament, most likely by assessing whether it should
be increased to four years, and whether we should have a
fixed election. Of all the matters it is discussing...
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Our
national day of shame
Muriel Newman
4 February 2013
As
expected, the Waitangi Day conflicts have already begun.
This year there is tribal warfare over who will escort
the Prime Minister onto the lower marae. Titewhai
Harawira, the mother of Mana Party leader...More >>>
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Why
"celebrate" Waitangi Day?
Prof
Martin Devlin
3 February 2013
The
Waitangi “season” is here - that time of year when
our political leaders embark upon their political
pilgrimages of atonement and appeasement, firstly to
Ratana pa, then on to Waitangi in Northland. This
annual charade will culminate...
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The
politicking begins
Muriel Newman
28 January 2013
It
was a week for political speeches. It began last Monday
with the soaring rhetoric of US President Barak
Obama’s inaugural address, which included
inspirational references to nationhood and equality...More >>>
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The
showdown begins
David
Round
27 January 2013
New
Year! It is a time for celebration ~ if only the
celebration of having survived a twelvemonth longer. It
is a time for new beginnings, for reflection... More >>>
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The
cure for poverty is growth
Muriel Newman
21 January 2013
Last
week former Prime Minister Helen Clark was subjected to
a scathing review of the United Nations Development
Programme that she has run since 2009.The evaluation was
carried out by her own executive board ....More >>>
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Born
onto a benefit
Lindsay
Mitchell
21 January 2013
A huge
amount is said about child poverty, but bugger all about what
causes it.
By the end of last year 13, 634 of the... More >>>
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2013
Parliament, politics, people
Muriel Newman
14 January 2012
The
start of a new year is an opportune time to reflect on
what lies ahead. Parliament resumes on January 29 and
will rise for Christmas on December 12, with a total of
93 sitting days scheduled... More >>>
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Global
outlook rosy; Europe's outlook grim
Matt
Ridley
13 January 2013
A
"rational optimist" like me thinks the world
will go on getting better for most people at a record
rate, not because I have a temperamental or ideological
bent to good cheer but because of the data. Poverty,
hunger, population growth rates, inequality, and mortality
from violence, disease and weather...
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Extortion
by a thousand demands
Muriel Newman
9 December 2012
In
a recent editorial on his Newstalk ZB Breakfast Show,
Mike Hosking made the point that in spite of paying out
billions of dollars in settling claims and giving
numerous apologies over a 30 year period.. More >>>
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A
Treaty of Waitangi Constitution
David
Round
9 December 2012
Christmas
and New Year! It is a time for relaxation and
celebration; a time, too, to reflect on the past year,
and wonder about and plan for the days to come. So let
us gaze, if not into a crystal ball, at least into the
clouds of the future...
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Illegitimate
constitutional
change
Muriel Newman
2 December 2012
Egypt
is in a state of constitutional crisis. Newly elected
President Mohammed Morsi has granted himself near enough
to absolute dictatorial power in order to neutralise the
judiciary... More >>>
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What
a bastard
James
Allan
2 December 2012
I
recently wrote an article (HERE)
about why any move in New Zealand to a written constitution would be
fraught with uncertainty and potential dangers.
The unelected judges who would be charged with interpreting the
final document...
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Power, Water, Spectrum, and
Fish
Muriel Newman
25 November 2012
In
1999, the National government sold the state owned
electricity generator Contact Energy, which owned hydro,
geothermal and gas-fired power stations in the North and
South Island, including the Clyde Dam.. More >>>
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Treaty
train rocks on to radio waves
Michel
Coote
25 November 2012
Just
when you thought it was safe to go back into the Maori
water rights issue that is fouling the National minority
government’s mixed ownership model (MOM) partial
selloff of state-owned hydroelectric power generators
worse than didymo, think again. More >>>
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The
housing affordability debate
Muriel Newman
18 November 2012
Housing
affordability is shaping up as a defining political
issue - probably an election issue in 2014. The problem
is that housing costs in Auckland in particular are
rising so rapidly that many low income families... More >>>
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Affordable
housing
Frank Newman
18 November 2012
Home affordability has been in the
news in recent weeks. The “problem” is a perennial
political football, but things got a little more serious
recently when the National Party released broad-brush
details of their plan to deal with the issue... More >>>
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Old
vs new politics
Muriel Newman
12 November 2012
In
his victory speech, newly re-elected US President Barack
Obama expressed his hope for the future, saying that
what made America great was love, duty, sharing and
patriotism. As
uplifting as these words may be... More >>>
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Schools,
Hospitals and Raw Prawns: Those asset sales again
Roger Bowden
12 November 2012
The
forthcoming state asset sales are necessary, Mr Key
tells us, to finance ‘more schools and hospitals’.
Or recently from Mr English, ‘more schools in
Christchurch’, which seems odd, because right now
they’re being closed down... More >>>
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Focus
on review
Muriel Newman
5 November 2012
After
a year of operation, and hundreds of thousands of
dollars worth of spending of public money, most New
Zealanders still have no idea that a government review
of our constitution is underway. More >>>
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‘New
Zealand’s Constitution; The Conversation So Far’
David
Round
4 November 2012
A
‘conversation’. The very word fills me with
foreboding... The very word has echoes of nanny telling
us that we must be civilised and behave like grownups,
and that our silly childish prejudices do not justify us
depriving other people, ... More >>>
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Strange
ideas on managing the economy
Muriel Newman
29 October 2012
Despite
political sideshows, the economy remains the key issue
of concern for most voters. It’s also top of the
agenda for most political parties - for their own
self-serving reasons. Surprisingly,
it’s the Green Party... More >>>
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Re-learning
what monetary policy can and can't do
Don Brash
29 October 2012
One
of the most depressing things that has happened in New
Zealand in recent times was the narrowness with which
Winston Peters’ bill to amend the Reserve Bank Act was
defeated a few days ago – 61 votes to 60... More >>>
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Independent
Constitutional Review Panel
Muriel Newman
22 October 2012
Last
week the Waitangi Tribunal released a report proposing
that more money should be given to the kohanga reo
movement. In spite of over $1,000,000,000 of
taxpayers’ money being spent on.. More >>>
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A
written constitution
for NZ
James Allan
29 October 2012
I
spent 11 wonderful years in Dunedin before moving over
to Brisbane, Australia eight years ago.
In both places I worked in a university law
school, and one of the subjects I taught (and teach) is ... More >>>
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Welfare
is a risk factor for children
Muriel Newman
15 October 2012
A
debate is currently raging over the underlying cause of
child abuse. It follows the disturbing revelation that
five out of every six children who are abused or
neglected before they are five years old, live in....More >>>
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Latest
welfare reforms no cause for hysteria
Lindsay
Mitchell
15 October 2012
There is no better example of the radical left
than Sue Bradford. Recently she reverted to chaining
herself to convenient fixtures. This time, a pillar at
the Ministry of Social Development's Auckland office,
her major complaint against... More >>>
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Apartheid
New Zealand
Muriel Newman
8 October 2012
Jobs
and higher incomes are the reasons usually given for
increasing numbers of New Zealanders crossing the ditch
to settle in Australia. A net 40,000 moved there in the
year to the end of August...
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No-one
owns the water
David
Round
7 October 2012
The
Maori water claim is not just an argument over an
increasingly valuable resource. It is also another nail
in the coffin of racial harmony and national survival.
There can be little doubt that we are facing very hard
times... More >>>
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Education
- a three way partnership
Muriel Newman
1 October 2012
Andre
Agassi dropped out of school in the 9th grade
to pursue his tennis career. He turned professional at
age 16 and went on to become a world champion. But he
deeply regretted the fact that he didn’t have.... More >>>
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Making
schooling work for all
Barend
Vlaardingerbroek
30 September 2012
I
was
quite amazed a couple of years ago to hear that almost
two-thirds of university entrants in
Iran
were female. Not that there’s anything unique about
Iran
in that respect, of course: the proportion of girls... More >>>
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Open
letter to the Prime Minister
Muriel Newman
24 September 2012
Dear
Prime Minister, New
Zealand has reached a defining moment in race relations.
On one hand, the aggressive demands of iwi for ownership
rights to water, wind, and other natural elements that
are public good resources... More >>>
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Constitutional
Advisory Panel
Prof Martin Devlin
24 September 2012
In
any mature society, the issue of having, abiding by or
amending, a country’s constitution is of national
significance and importance. This facet of national life
determines not only.. More >>>
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Stand
up for New Zealand!
Muriel Newman
17 September 2012
The
absurd Treaty of Waitangi claims being made by iwi
leaders for the ownership of pubic good resources that
are the foundation of life itself are driving New
Zealand towards a race relations tipping point... More >>>
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We
get the government we deserve
David Round
17 September 2012
As
well as the better-known physical earthquakes,
Canterbury received another sort of shake-up in 2010,
when Parliament made the Environment Canterbury
(Temporary Commissioners and Improved Water Management)
Act 2010... More >>>
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Time
to challenge claims and claimants
Muriel Newman
9 September 2012
Last
week it was water. This week it is wind. Having
successfully taken ownership of the foreshore and seabed
from the Crown - and with the embedding of the Treaty of
Waitangi.... More >>>
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An
argument against iwi claims
Elizabeth Rata
9 September 2012
In
recent years iwi have been extremely successful in
pursuing their demands for public resources and
political power. The intriguing question is how to
explain such total success given that many New
Zealanders, both Maori and non-Maori, are increasingly
concerned about the run-away juggernaut of iwi
ambitions.... More >>>
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Last
chance to comment on MMP
Muriel Newman
2 September 2012
In the lead up to last
year’s referendum on our voting system, New Zealanders
were re-assured that if MMP was successful, the system
would be reviewed and improved. This promise persuaded
many people... More >>>
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MMP
review
set to make things worse
Jordan Williams
2 September 2012
The
New Zealand public have been duped.
Kiwis supported keeping MMP at last year’s
referendum in a large part due to the promised “MMP
Review”. We were
told that MMP would be improved by the Electoral
Commission... More >>>
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No
new historic claims
Muriel Newman
27 August 2012
The
Waitangi Tribunal finding that Maori have property
rights to water was predictable, but nevertheless is
reminder of how well organised the tribal elite have
become. They have their own political party... More >>>
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Just
say no!
Michael
Coote
27
August 2012
“Just
say no,” was a famous catch phrase sponsored by former
US presidential first lady Nancy Reagan to persuade
American children not to engage in violence, premarital
sex, and illicit drug abuse. We
could well revive that campaign here in New Zealand, but
applied to the government’s response to Maori. .. More >>>
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A
Declaration of Equality
Muriel Newman
20 August 2012
Ever since the New Zealand
Centre for Political Research was first established in
2005, we have been fighting against racial privilege. We
firmly believe that all New Zealanders should be equal
in the eyes of the law.... More >>>
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Charter
David
Round
19 August 2012
New
Zealand was conceived in innocence. Her foundation on
these green islands was a work in optimism and faith, in
the hope that men and women might live here decently and
fairly and strive together in communities of good
citizenship...More >>>
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Positive
reality or fictional fantasy?
Muriel Newman
13 August 2012
In
2003, the late Dr Michael Crichton, a best-selling
author with more than 200 million books in print
including Jurassic Park and
State of Fear, was asked what he thought was
the most important challenge facing mankind. He
explained... More >>>
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Sustainability
and the role of the university
Ron
Smith
12 August 2012
It
appears from my local paper that, along with Unitech,
the University of Waikato has formally committed itself
to the United Nations Higher Education Sustainability
Initiative, which was part of the much-reported June,
Rio + 20, process... More >>>
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Time
for a new approach to education
Muriel Newman
6 August 2012
Without
a doubt, the welcome sound of the New Zealand National
Anthem ringing out from the London Olympic Games
rekindles that wonderful sense of pride in being a New
Zealander... More >>>
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The
Dunce-ification of Everythink
Lindsay
Perigo
5 August 2012
A
shock-horror headline emblazoned on the front page of The
Dominion Post's June 23-24 weekend edition asked,
“Are we raising a nation of dunces?”... More >>>
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State
culpability: the Kahui twins
Muriel Newman
29 July 2012
In
2006, the death of the Kahui twins sparked national
outrage, which escalated when family members closed
ranks as the “tight 12”, refusing to cooperate with
the Police. Over a year later, in August 2007 ... More >>>
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Family
structure matters
Theodore
Dalrymple
29 July 2012
Never
having lived in an age other than our own, I do not know
whether the capacity of people to deny the obvious was
ever greater than it is now. Suffice it to say that our
own capacity in this regard is by no means negligible or... More >>>
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Are
we one or two?
Muriel Newman
22 July 2012
Masquerading
as servants of their peoples, an elite group of tribal
leaders have persuaded governments to give them public
riches that they do not deserve. Today they are claiming
the ownership of New Zealand’s water. ... More >>>
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New
Zealand Constitution: Why iwi have got it wrong
Elizabeth
Rata
22 July 2012
There
is deep disquiet throughout the country about iwi claims for
water rights. However
by focussing on the resource itself; previously the foreshore
and seabed, this time water, next time airwaves, geothermal
energy, and so on... More >>>
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Have
your say about your council
Muriel Newman
16 July 2012
Without
a doubt New Zealand's 78 councils are a significant part
of the economy, making up 4 percent of Gross Domestic
Product, spending $7.5 billion a year of public money,
and managing $100 billion of public assets... More >>>
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Local
government restructuring – putting the cart before the
horse?
Phil
McDermott
15 July 2012
In
March 2012 central government launched a multifaceted
reform programme, Better
Local Government.
The aim is to “refocus” local councils in the
interests of improving governance, efficiency, and
management. More >>>
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One
battle ends, a new one begins
Muriel Newman
8 July 2012
In spite of the dedication and hard work of tens of thousands of
New Zealanders - and the support of hundreds of
thousands - sadly, we have been unable to gather enough
signatures to trigger a nation-wide referendum ... More >>>
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Our
Foreshore and Seabed - precious enough to fight for
Dr Hugh Barr
8 July 2012
Though
our Citizens Initiated Referendum has failed narrowly to
get to its target, the Coastal Coalition will continue
to campaign strongly against National’s Marine and
Coastal Area Act. So I ask that all Coastal Coalition
members stay in touch, and help us with this fight. .. More >>>
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Equality
for all
Muriel Newman
1 July 2012
Next
week the Waitangi Tribunal will be hearing the Maori
Council’s claim for the ownership of New Zealand’s
freshwater. To most people, water, like air, is part of
a natural cycle and is regarded as a ‘common good’
... More >>>
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Turning
around race-based policy
Mike Butler
1 July 2012
Race-based
policy has been a feature of governance in New Zealand
as long as the nation has had a government, and
race-based affirmative action has been with us since the
1980s. Where is this heading and can anything be done to
stop it? This column seeks to describe what the likely
costs will be... More >>>
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Agenda
21
Muriel Newman
25 June 2012
There
is a strange irony about New Zealanders. While some are
extremely vocal in opposing foreign ownership of land or
assets, they turn a blind eye when a foreign group like
the United Nation effectively take over... More >>>
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Alabama
bans UN Agenda 21
Alex Newman
24 June 2012
Alabama
became the first state to adopt a tough law protecting
private property and due process by prohibiting any
government involvement with or participation in a
controversial United Nations scheme known as Agenda 21.... More >>>
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Local
government reform
Muriel Newman
17 June 2012
Last
week, the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Bill had its
first reading in Parliament.
There is no doubt that reform of local government is long
overdue. Ratepayers up and down the country...More >>>
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Communities
under siege
Sandra Goudie
17 June 2012
Communities
throughout New Zealand are feeling under siege from
regional councils, district councils, and external lobby
groups who are not part of their living, working
communities. Spatial
planning has spawned an avalanche of costly... More >>>
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Union
victory our loss
Muriel Newman
10 June 2012
National’s
back down last week over school staffing cuts was a
significant victory for the union movement. Two of the
country’s most powerful unions - the New Zealand
Educational Institute and the....
More >>>
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Is
there a Euromess in our own shop?
Roger Bowden
10 June 2012
On the
face of it, the euromess is an old story. Populist
governments and rampant bureaucrats are expensive
indulgences at the best of times. With the global
economic hangover we call the global financial crisis
(GFC), to spend too much... More >>>
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The
Ureweras - the real story
Muriel Newman
4 June 2012
Last
week at the Leveson Inquiry into the culture, practices
and ethics of the Murdoch newspaper group in the UK,
former British Prime Minister Tony Blair gave evidence
that the biggest problem with the press was...
More >>>
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Sensible
sentencing of Urewera four
Stephen Franks
4 June 2012
It
was a good day for New Zealand. Justice Hansen
sentencing the Urewera four was having none of what he
called their “utterly implausible” excuses. Well
done, police and prosecutors... More >>>
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The
Budget 2012
Muriel Newman
27 May 2012
Nowadays budgets are not what they
used to be when the public crowded around their wireless
or TV to hear the changes of the day. For many, their
main interest was in knowing the increases in excise
duty of smokes and....
More >>>
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Another
missed opportunity
Don Brash
27 May 2012
Over
the days since the Minister of Finance presented his
fourth Budget, there has been extensive debate about the
details of the Budget’s growth projections (will New
Zealand achieve growth of 3.4% in the year to March
2014?).... More >>>
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Looking
ahead
Muriel Newman
21 May 2012
This
year’s budget is to be released on Thursday. It will
be delivered against a backdrop of increasing global
economic uncertainty, particularly in the Eurozone.
Greece is unable to form a government and...
More >>>
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Euromess:
Irresistible forces, immovable objects economic
realities
Roger
Bowden
19 May 2012
You’ve
got to hand it to the jocks in the financial markets. My
German co-author, who knows a bit about such things,
tells me there’s already a spread trade going in
credit default swaps (CDS). I won’t bore you with the
details... More >>>
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Outrage
at welfare changes
Muriel Newman
13 May 2012
Poverty
advocates are crying foul over the fact that the
government is even raising the idea of linking the
immunisation of children to benefit receipt, even though
it is an established practice that works well in...
More >>>
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Paid
Parental Leave - time to take a step back
Lindsay
Mitchell
11 March 2012
The
NZ Herald recently ran a poll asking whether National
was right to use its veto to override Labour MP Sue
Moroney's private member's bill to extend Paid Parental
Leave (PPL) from 14 weeks to 6 months. After 16,000
votes were... More >>>
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Hijacking
our constitution
Muriel Newman
6 May 2012
ACT
is again in the political spotlight, but for all the
wrong reasons. The controversy surrounding John Banks
and his 2010 Auckland Mayoral campaign donations is not
subsiding.... More >>>
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Treaty
beliefs, in their own words
Mike Butler
6 May 2012
One
unchanging political reality is that review panels are
set up to get the outcomes of the interested party. I
suggest that the current constitutional advisory panel
has been carefully set up with focussed terms of
reference, and carefully vetted panel members, to achieve the
Maori Party goal of ensuring...
More
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Tax
freedom day
Muriel Newman
29 April 2012
Saturday
was Tax Freedom Day. As far as the central government
tax burden is concerned, Saturday was the notional day
of the year when the average New Zealander stopped
working for the government.... More >>>
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Why
taxes are so high – and set to rise a lot more
Bryce Wilkinson
29 April 2012
During
the last hundred years central government taxes per
capita rose 20 times faster than consumer prices (from
around $660 in 1910 to $13,198 in 2010 in year ended
March 2011 dollars, as in the chart below)...More
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A
snapshot of New Zealand
Muriel Newman
22 April 2012
The
reality is that the world is a far better place today
than it was 50 years ago or even a few years ago - and
it will be better still in the years to come. The
technological and internet innovations that we are
currently experiencing are only the starting point of a
revolution that is now underway and is... More >>>
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Foreign
Policy in an Interdependent World: A NZ Perspective
Mike Moore
21 April 2012
Small
nations need rules-based systems more than great powers
- the law is the great equaliser. We all know, to our
great cost, the dangers posed by the soft option of
isolationism... More
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A
New Carbon Tax
Muriel Newman
15 April 2012
It has been
estimated that the ETS has cost the average family of
four around $750 a year since it was introduced in 2010.
The government is now planning to double that cost to
around $1,500 a year... More >>>
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The
Great Government Green-wash
Barry Brill
15 April 2012
Deception
has always been at the heart of the Emissions Trading
Scheme legislation. When
it was enacted in great haste by a Labour Government in
2008, the public were told it was intended to stave off
global warming. In fact, its purpose was to settle a
major law suit brought against the Government by the
forestry industry...
More
>>>
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Crafar
Farm facts
Muriel Newman
9 April 2012
A
decision on the future ownership of the Crafar Farms, a
large North Island farming operation that went into
receivership in October 2009 owing $194 million, is
imminent. Acting on behalf of the new owners... More >>>
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Fact or Counterfactional? Unpacking the Crafar Controversy.
Bronwyn Howell
8 April 2012
ustice
Miller’s setting aside of the Ministerial consent
given under the Overseas Investment Act 2005 for the
highly contentious sale of the Crafar farms to Chinese
interests (Pengxin) in the High Court in Wellington on
February 3 raises more questions than it answers...
More
>>>
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Time
to look forward
Muriel Newman
1 April 2012
There
is a growing consensus amongst western leaders that policies
and practices that divide citizens along ethnic and cultural
lines are immensely damaging to societies and nations... More >>>
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The
Biculturalism Myth
David Round
1 April 2012
I
have been thinking about ‘culture’, my friends, and
am trying to get a handle on this most important matter.
Culture is jolly important. We hear a lot about Maori
culture, and hear all the time that we are a
‘bicultural nation’, although this....
More
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Time
to have your say on our voting system
Muriel Newman
26 March 2012
The
review of MMP is well underway with over 2,000
submissions already received, swamping the 200 to 800
received during previous reviews. While the deadline for
written submissions is not until May 31,
for... More >>>
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Review
of MMP and why it sets a dangerous precedent
Jordan Williams
25 March 2012
The
decision by New Zealanders to keep MMP means that any
changes that come as a result of the “review” of MMP
will be those the politicians prefer to implement.
This piece discusses the scope of the
“review”...
More
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Last
chance to defend coastal rights
Muriel Newman
19 March 2012
A
half page advertisement promoting our Citizens Initiated
Referendum (CIR) to restore Crown ownership of the
foreshore and seabed will appear in community newspapers
throughout the country this week... More >>>
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When
will iwi and Finlayson start taking our beaches?
Hugh
Barr
18 March 2012
Rumours
continue to circulate about sweet deals that Public
Foreshore & Seabed Minister Christopher Finlayson is
doing in secret with coastal iwi, especially in
Northland on Ninety Mile Beach, one of our most iconic
beaches.
.....
More
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Reforms
focus on work
Muriel Newman
12 March 2012
New
Zealand has always had a strong welfare state tradition.
In its original form, as introduced by
Michael Joseph Savage in 1938, state welfare
supplemented the community-based charitable efforts that... More >>>
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Welfare
reforms are in the interest of children
Lindsay
Mitchell
11 March 2012
Welfare
reforms the government will legislate for later this
year have been typically denounced by opposition
politicians and child advocates. Many have railed in
particular against the idea that mothers with children
as young as 1 year-old...
More
>>>
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Radical
forces plan to replace our constitution
Muriel Newman
5 March 2012
By
agreeing to the Maori Party’s demand for a
Constitutional Review, as part of their 2008 and 2011
Confidence and Supply Agreements, the National Party is
advancing the agenda of radical forces... More >>>
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Marching
though the institutions
Elizabeth
Rata
4 March 2012
he
elite of neotribal capitalism have played a decisive and
self-interested role in controlling shifts in the
interpretation of the Treaty of Waitangi. In the
identity politics of the 1970s ‘honouring the
treaty’ initially referred to...
More
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The
need for local government reform
Muriel Newman
26 February 2012
There
incidents are widespread problems with local government.
At a time when central government is tightening its
belt, striving to reduce debt and lower its costs, local
government appears to be moving in... More >>>
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Let's
take our councils back
Owen
McShane
26 February 2012
Many people around the country are
unhappy with the performance of their Councils and
demanding action of one kind or another. Perhaps
surprisingly, the same key issues are being debated in
places as diverse as the UK....
More
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Time
to have your say on welfare
Muriel Newman
19 February 2012
In
its Green Paper for Vulnerable Children, the government
estimates that 15 percent of children under the age of
18 are particularly vulnerable. By that they mean that
“without significant support and intervention... More >>>
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How
welfare harms children
Lindsay
Mitchell
19 February 2012
Welfare does not equate to well-being. Poverty
is not the over-arching problem it is painted as;
open-ended benefits, as a misguided response to poverty
are.
More
>>>
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Will
the claims ever end?
Muriel Newman
12 February 2012
Revelations
that the Maori Council has lodged a new Waitangi Tribunal
claim for the ownership of the country’s fresh water
supplies has been greeted with widespread concern... More >>>
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The
New Zealand Maori Council Water Rights Claim
Stephen
Franks
12 February 2012
The
Waitangi Tribunal claims just announced by the New
Zealand Maori Council are unapologetically an attempt at
legal mugging. Though purportedly based on the deep
wounds Maoridom will feel if SOE shares are sold before
the ownership of water is settled...
More
>>>
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Grievance
day
Muriel Newman
6 February 2012
Waitangi
Day has become national Maori Grievance Day. The Maori
sovereignty flag, symbolising the desire of radical
Maori to take over ownership and control of New Zealand,
now flies from official buildings - with the blessing of
the Prime Minister.... More >>>
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Treaty
transparency: Settlements
1989-2012
Mike
Butler
5 February 2012
A
settlement of the Ninety Mile Beach tribe’s complaints
plus Maori politicians posturing over proposed asset
sales have awakened interest in the on-going saga of
quasi legal claims by a handful of high profile
individuals and compensation payments by the government...
More
>>>
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Does
our food industry need new regulation?
Muriel Newman
29 January 2012
The
Department of Trade and Industry describes the food and
beverage industry as the “lynchpin of New Zealand's
prosperity”. Representing a half of all New Zealand's
merchandise exports by value, the industry has... More >>>
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The
Food bill
Eric Crampton
29 January 2012
Nobody
really seems to know just what will come of the proposed
changes to New Zealand’s food safety regime. Minister
for Food Safety Kate Wilkinson assures us that the
regime simply modernizes New Zealand legislation and...
More
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The
Government's Plan for NZ
Muriel Newman
22 January 2012
The
Speech from the Throne is delivered by the Queen’s
representative, the Governor General, at the opening of
a new Parliament. Traditionally, the speech sets out the
reasons for summoning Parliament.... More >>>
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Eurozone
- New Zealand Exposures
Roger
Bowden
22 January 2012
Economists
often talk about shocks, and in the next breath about
impulse response functions, which is basically how an
initial shock follows through over time to the rest of
the economy....
More
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2012:
Setting the scene
Muriel Newman
15 January 2012
The
2012 year has had a turbulent start – from the
increasingly chaotic state of the European economies, to
the proliferation of geopolitical unrest, to the
on-going aftershocks in Christchurch, to the
unpredictable weather!... More >>>
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The
Eurozone Meltdown and New Zealand Exposures
Roger
Bowden
15 January 2012
Economic
life these days seems to shudder from one crisis to
another. The US finally looks like clawing its way back
from its own version of a financial nightmare, the
subprime crisis...
More
>>>
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Xmas
message
Muriel Newman
18 December 2011
Some
huge challenges lie ahead. In a country where all New
Zealanders, irrespective of racial origin should have equal
status and equal rights, the Maori Party - once more a partner
in government... More >>>
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National
ready to govern again
Muriel Newman
11 December 2011
This is the final
NZCPR Weekly column dealing with the 2011 General Election. We
hope you have found value in our coverage. Before the election
we wanted to inform you of the policy prescriptions being
promoted by... More >>>
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The
no-vote protest vote
Mike
Butler
11 December 2011
Why
did the losers lose in last week’s general election? Labour
leader-in-departure Phil Goff says it was not their time, and
Shane Jones wants to know why three out of every four voters
thought Team Goff was unfit to govern. Nearly 300,000 voters
deserted Labour between 2005 and 2011 voting with their feet....
More
>>>
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Eurogeddon
and austerity
Muriel Newman
4 December 2011
While
the coalition negotiations between National, ACT, United and the
Maori Party continue on in their indeterminable way, the
sovereign debt crisis in Europe deepens. Amid fears of
loan defaults by Italy and Greece,... More >>>
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Three
more years
Karl
du Fresne
4 December 2011
Let’s
get the congratulations out of the way first. National’s
election triumph was as emphatic as they get, at least under
MMP. Admittedly, it’s rare for a government to be tossed out
of office after only one term: it last happened in 1975...,More
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Election
2011 – the final countdown
Muriel Newman
27 November 2011
Last
month, with the Rugby World Cup in full swing, the country was
painted black in support of the All Blacks. Now, the country is
painted blue in support of a National-led government.
Almost half of the population... More >>>
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Election
2011 -
the winners and the losers
Frank
Newman
27 November 2011
The
votes are in. The winners are grinners, and the losers are out
or about to be ousted. While politicians spin the results, the
numbers tell the story. So who won? Who lost? And why?
More
>>>
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Election
2011 – tapes, vandalism, separatism, and the voting
referendum
Muriel Newman
20 November 2011
John Key was right
to take a principled stand to prevent the release of an illegal
tape recording of a private conversation between himself and
John Banks. If he hadn’t, the whole boundary between what is
private and what is public would... More >>>
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Maori
politics - rights without responsibility
Mike
Butler
20 November 2011
Which
New Zealand political party poses the greatest threat to
harmonious race relations? The parties that assert one law for
all, or those demanding entrenched Maori seats, automatic
enrolment of Maori on the Maori electoral roll, have Maori
language compulsorily available in schools...
More
>>>
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Election
2011 - storm
clouds
gather
on
horizon
Muriel Newman
14 November 2011
As
the Head of the International Monetary Fund Christine Lagarde
was warning about the bleak global economic outlook last week,
New Zealand politicians were digging deeper into taxpayer
pockets and promising to... More >>>
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The
1% balance and Belshazzar’s Feast
Roger
Bowden
13 November 2011
They
straggled past down Cuba Street, an odd collection of gaunt
activists, earnest ladies and scruffy alternative lifestylers,
waving handwritten signs ‘WE ARE THE OTHER 99%’, and
handing out cyclostyled bits of paper on the scourges.. More
>>>
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Election
2011 - “it’s
the economy, stupid”
Muriel Newman
7 November 2011
As predicted, the
biggest issue of the 2011 Election campaign is the economy. And
the major question on people’s minds is which party is better
placed to run the economy and protect us from... More >>>
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National's
welfare reforms - lots of smoke but not much fire
Lindsay Mitchell
6 November 2011
Listening
to the response to National's welfare policy on talkback radio
you would think National had proposed really radical reforms
in the run up to next month's election... More
>>>
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Election
2011 - round one
Muriel Newman
31 October 2011
The
campaign for New Zealand’s 2011 General Election on 26
November has started. The jostling and jockeying, shaking hands
and kissing babies, meetings and protests, promises and
bickering, the battle of ideas for...
More >>>
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Now
is the hour for our leadership to arise
Owen Glenn
30 October 2011
Leaders
grow things; they also make positive possibilities happen.
So where are our ones when we need them most?
We had leaders
once. Maybe we still do
but they’re conspicuous by their vocal absence... More
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Fresh
thinking
Muriel Newman
24 October 2011
With
the Rugby World Cup now almost
behind us – and a HUGE congratulations to the All
Blacks for their win and to all of those who made the
tournament so successful – the country’s focus will
soon turn to politics. With the 2011 general election
just four weeks away...
More >>>
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Gas
against wind
Matt Ridley
23 October 2011
Which
would you rather have in the view from your house? A thing
about the size of a domestic garage, or eight towers twice the
height of Nelson’s column with blades noisily thrumming the
air. The energy they can produce over ten years is similar:
eight wind turbines of 2.5-megawatts...
More
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Time
to hold politicians to account
Muriel Newman
17 October 2011
In 2006, property investor
Terrence Stirling applied to the Christchurch City Council for
a resource consent for a bulk retail centre on a two-hectare
site some 50 metres from the central business district... More >>>
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Let's
"Dis" the DURT
Owen
McShane
16 October 2011
The
publication of the Auckland Plan has stimulated some vigorous
and timely debate about the impact of excessive restraints of
supply on the price of land in our urban areas. Make no
mistake, regulations, that constrain the land supply are a key
ingredient in the DURT that seizes up the wheels...
More
>>>
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Crime
- it’s
about demography not race
Muriel Newman
9 October 2011
The Maori Party is
claiming that New Zealand’s justice, police, courts
and corrections processes systematically discriminate
against Maori. Co-leader Pita Sharples says that he has
based his stance on a series of top-level...More >>>
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Tough
policies reduce crime
Garth
McVicar
9 October 2011
Following
the Maori Parties [via Pita Sharples] allegations of Police
bias towards Maori Sensible Sentencing Trust Spokesman Garth
McVicar is asking if the Maori Party is really a covert
organisation in disguise.“... More
>>>
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Winning
an election is not enough
Muriel Newman
2 October 2011
The Rugby World Cup is
showing New Zealanders what is possible when we all
unite behind a common purpose. Imagine how far we could
go as a country if we all got behind a goal like lifting
our living standards! More >>>
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Beware
the dark greens
Owen
McShane
2 October 2011
We
may all be environmentalists now. However, just as, over the
last several decades, most of us have learned to be feminists,
most of us have also learned to reject the dark side of the
feminist movement that remains deeply Marxist in its roots and
intentions. More
>>>
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Spotlight
on politicians over debt crisis
Muriel Newman
25 September 2011
The
grim outlook for the world economy is putting huge
pressure on political leaders to come up with lasting
solutions to their country’s financial woes. The way
in which they choose to respond could have a major long
term global impact. ....
More >>>
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How
Is Warren
Buffett Like the Pope?
Richard
Epstein
25 September 2011
They
are both dead wrong on economic policy. The terrible economic
news from both Europe and the United States has led to much
soul-searching on both sides of the Atlantic. How did we get
here, and how can we get out of this jam? Both
economies will be able to extricate themselves from their deep
slumps only by promptly reversing those policies that have
brought them to the brink. ... More
>>>
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Leave
our constitution alone
Muriel Newman
18 September 2011
A
Maori academic who says that immigration by whites
should be restricted because they pose a threat to race
relations due to their "white supremacist"
attitudes, is leading an Independent Maori Working Group
on constitutional reform...
More >>>
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A
Slippery Slope to Ruin
David
Round
18 September 2011
For
some years I taught constitutional law at the University of
Canterbury. I was also a debater, in those days when debating
was a more popular activity than it is now ~ and it would
happen, from time to time, when I appeared to speak in a
debate, that the chairman, in introducing me, would tell the
audience that I was... More
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Strategy for Power Price Increases
Muriel Newman
12 September 2011
For
those New Zealanders concerned about the relentless rise
in the price of power, the New Zealand Energy Strategy,
released last month by the National-led government,
offers little hope of relief... More >>>
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New
Zealand’s Energy Strategy – the good, the bad, and
the ugly
Bryan
Leyland
9 September 2011
The
latest New Zealand Energy Strategy is a strange mixture of
pragmatism, ignorance, unachievable aspirations and disregards
our biggest energy resource. The
policy on oil and gas is sensible and admirable... More
>>>
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A
matter of trust
Muriel Newman
4 September 2011
As I write this newsletter, like you, my sympathies go
out to the people of Christchurch... We can only wish them well as they struggle
to rebuild their lives. But as we watch the replays of the earthquakes, we are
again reminded of the power of nature and mankind’s
insignificance by comparison. ...
More >>>
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Confidence
in climate scientists plummets
Barry
Brill
4 September 2011
In
a Rasmussen national
telephone survey of American adults conducted last month, 69%
say it’s likely that some scientists have falsified research
data in order to support their own theories and beliefs. Only
6% say it is not at all likely.
More
>>>
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An
avoidable tragedy
Muriel Newman
31 August 2011
The
death of Nia Glassie was sickening. It exposed the darkest side
of human behaviour – the killing of a defenceless child. If it
was a one-off event, it would be bad enough, but the fact that
it occurs over and over again is a cause of deep concern to
every New Zealander... More >>>
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Brits
recoil from teaching respect for authority at home or
school
Peter
Saunders
29 August 2011
When
I was a student, I took a course in the sociology of deviance.
After weeks reviewing theories about the causes of
law-breaking, the lecturer announced that we were asking the
wrong question. "The
real question," he said, "is not why some break the
law. It is why we don't all break the law."..
More
>>>
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A
gravy train of "full & final" settlements
Muriel Newman
24 August 2011
A
few weeks ago the Minister for Treaty Settlements indicated that
he might try to rush more than 20 settlement bills through
Parliament as an omnibus bill before the House rises...
More >>>
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Treaty
payouts near $2.5b and continue to grow
Mike
Butler
21 August 2011
The total
redress paid under Treaty of Waitangi settlements is
approaching $2.5-billion and will continue to increase,
according to information from the Office of Treaty
Settlements. Eleven settlements with a total financial redress
amount of $216.64-million are awaiting legislation and...
More
>>>
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Mending
a broken society
There
are no excuses for the rioting and hooliganism that took place
in Britain in recent weeks. It was criminal and cowardly
behaviour – the worst form of opportunism by (mostly) young
delinquents...
More >>>
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Renewing
Compassion
Rt
Hon Iain Duncan-Smith
14 August 2011
Back
in the 1970s businesses avoided the UK because of its high
taxes, high strike rates and low productivity. We were losing
more than 20 million working days a year to labour disputes,
and had a lower rate of productivity growth...
More
>>>
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Time
to scrap the ETS
Muriel Newman
9 August 2011
Lord
Christopher Monckton, a former policy adviser to British Prime
Minister Margaret Thatcher and one of the world’s leading
climate change realists, has been visiting New Zealand reminding
audiences that the world’s climate is not in the grip of
catastrophic man-made global warming... More >>>
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ETS
- Hot air and cold cash
Robin
Grieve
7 August 2011
The
fact that Phil Goff intends funding Labour’s $800 million
policy of paying R & D tax credits by bringing
agriculture’s biological emissions into the ETS two year
early in 2013 raises some very interesting questions about the
mechanisms of the ETS and its purpose. Goff stated that
delaying the entry of...
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Maori
Seat Increase Undermines MMP Referendum
Muriel Newman
1 August 2011
As
a representative democracy New Zealand’s system of government
is supposed to be ‘of the people, by the people, for the
people’. So why do our ruling parties go to such great lengths
to prevent ... More >>>
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Strengthening
Democracy – giving voters more power
Steve
Baron
31 July
2011
I
have been campaigning for more direct democracy in our
political system since 2003, but just recently I looked at
some old newspaper clippings from 1985 and realised I was even
talking about referendums way back then. Having an interest or
passion for politics is rather peculiar in this day and age. ..
More
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Capital
Gains Tax – Labour’s great leap
backwards
Muriel Newman
26 July 2011
Since
the 2008 election, the Labour Party has been desperately
searching for a new identity and relevance. As the main
opposition party they have failed to...
More >>>
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Capital
Gains Tax pitfalls and false prophets
Frank
Newman
24 July
2011
Over
the last few weeks various economists and tax experts have
been trying to predict the economic effects of Labour’s capital
gains tax (CGT) proposal. What the experts do agree on is
the best tax is one that is simple, has a...
More
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Coastal
Coalition’s CIR Gets the
Green Light
Muriel Newman
18 July 2011
Since
1996 our MMP voting system has given New Zealand a series of
coalition governments, consisting of a mainstream party –
Labour or National – and minor parties. Some minor parties
have radical agendas...
More >>>
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Why
we are running a Citizens Initiated Referendum against
National’s Marine & Coastal Area Act
Dr
Hugh Barr
17
July
2011
Dr
Muriel Newman and I, the co-founders of the Coastal Coalition,
are leading a Citizens Initiated Referendum on the
question “Should the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act 2011be replaced
by legislation that restores Crown ownership of the foreshore
and seabed?” ... More
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Radical
forces shape our future
Muriel Newman
12 July 2011
There
is no doubt that New Zealand is being subjected, more than ever
before, to radical forces from within. Previously we - the
silent majority - quite rightly relied upon our elected
politicians to do the talking and keep the radicals at bay, so
that the wishes of the majority of citizens were respected.... More >>>
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The
Jeweled Gecko
Gerry
Eckhoff
10
July
2011
There
is an old adage that observes that if you want the same
result, just keep on doing the same things.
The loss of the famed Jeweled Gecko to wild
life smugglers continues unabated from the Otago Peninsula and
no doubt - else where... More
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Wai
262 empowers Maori elite
Muriel Newman
3 July 2011
Saturday’s
release of the Waitangi Tribunal’s long-awaited report on the
Wai 262 indigenous flora and fauna claim is packed full of
recommendations designed to empower the Maori elite.While the
Tribunal is careful to... More >>>
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Horotiu
the taniwha stirs
David
Round3
July
2011
The
Auckland City Council’s plans for a $2.6 billion rail loop to
assist in easing the city’s transport woes have encountered, as
all Aucklanders will be aware, a perhaps unexpected obstacle. One
Glenn Wilcox ... More
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Decision
Time for CIR
Muriel Newman
25 June 2011
It
is decision time for the proposed Citizens Initiated Referendum
(CIR) to restore Crown ownership of the foreshore and seabed. If
you are concerned about this issue I would ask you to forward
this newsletter on to as many interested people as you can...
More >>>
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The
Challenge of Citizens Initiated Referenda
Larry
Baldock
25
June
2011
How
hard can it be to collect enough signatures for a referendum?
Well first let’s look at the history of Citizens Initiated
Referenda (CIR) since Parliament passed the legislation to allow
for such a democratic process in 1993.
After
the Muldoon years and the turmoil of the 4th Labour
Government, the National party sensed growing public
dissatisfaction with politicians ignoring the people. ... More
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Does
marriage matter?
Muriel Newman
20 June 2011
The
rate of marriage in New Zealand is continuing to decline.
According to Statistics New Zealand the rate of marriage has
plummeted over the last 40 years by 72 percent from 45.5 per
1,000 people aged 16 years and over in 1971, to 12.45 last year...
More >>>
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Family
Court review a good start – but real vision is needed
Bruce
Tichbon
19 June
2011
In
ancient Greek mythology, the Hydra was a venomous serpent-like
creature with many heads. Each
time a head was cut off, two grew in its place.
The Hydra was defeated by the hero Hercules.... More
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A
scandal of wasted opportunity
Muriel Newman
13 June 2011
The
70 job losses announced last week by KiwiRail in Dunedin and
Wellington, and the 41 from Yarrows bakery in South Taranaki are
reminders of how difficult business conditions are in New
Zealand at the present time...
More >>>
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Young
people need youth rates of pay
Alasdair
Thompson
12 June
2011
Six
years ago when the Labour government was planning to abolish
minimum pay rates for youth, our organization, the Employers and
Manufacturers Association, said the move was certain to hurt the
very people it was intended to help... More
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Time
for a national economic strategy
Muriel Newman
6 June 2011
Last
month the Minister of Finance asked for ideas to kick start the
economy. It was a surprising request from someone who had just
delivered the Budget - an economic blueprint for the years
ahead...
More >>>
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A
week is a long time in politics
Phil
O'Reily
5 June
2011
The
recent Budget raised the question: What should we be doing to
grow the economy? The initial response by many commentators was
that the 2011 Budget was safe and headed in the right direction...
More
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Popular
beaches targeted for claims
Muriel Newman
31 May 2011
It
has started – Maori tribal corporations are lining up to claim
customary title of our coastline. Thanks to National’s Marine
and Coastal Area Act... the birthright and common heritage of all
New Zealanders...has now been put up
for grabs by iwi. Reports are now emerging that claims for prime areas...
More >>>
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Making
referendum count
Colin
Craig
29
May
2011
I
wonder how you voted in the last binding referendum. I refer of
course to the 2008 election in which we the people decided the
mix of representatives for the next 3 years. Of course there is
another binding referendum (election) later this year but is one
every 3 years enough? I think not... More
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Budget
2011: A wasted opportunity
Muriel Newman
24 May 2011
In
terms of theatre, last Thursday’s election year budget was a polished performance - a nice public relations
exercise aimed at pacifying the concerns of voters, while giving
little to opposition parties to really get their teeth into... More >>>
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Tackling
Welfare
Muriel Newman
17 May 2011
With
the financial crisis forcing governments around the world to
tighten their belts the call for welfare reform is growing
stronger. In Australia, teenage parents could lose welfare
payments as soon as six months after... More >>>
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It's
time to say "no more"
Muriel Newman
9 May 2011
Last
Thursday, TVNZ’s current affairs programme Close Up, asked
viewers “Do Maori have a special place in this country?” The
result was overwhelming - 81 percent of the 40,000 respondents
said “No”, Maori do not have a special place.
More >>>
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Time
to Say "no" to Treaty Claims
David
Round
8
May
2011
There
is an old joke, which I am afraid I have used more than once on
occasions where speeches may be required to run along very
familiar lines, in which one remarks that ones job as a speaker
is a little like the challenge which faced Elizabeth Taylor’s
eighth husband on their wedding night...
More
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The
new political landscape
Muriel Newman
2 May 2011
Former
British Prime Minister Harold Wilson once quipped, “A week is
a long time in politics”. Last week was a long time in
politics! Within one week
new forces have emerged at both ends of NZ’s
political spectrum....
More >>>
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The
economic consequences of Mr Key
Prof. Roger
Bowden
2
May
2011
It’s
been an odd sort of government, these last three years. The one
thing they’ve done really well, namely the slick PR job on Mr
Key.... should be enough
to get the National Party back on the treasury benches.
More
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Please note
that the above columns are the most recent. Older columns by
date can be found by clicking the ARCHIVES button on the top
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