Category: Politics
The New Zealand First Party has promised that if it is invited into a coalition government following the general election on the 23 September one of it's not negotiable policies will be to require the prospective coalition partner to agree to two binding referenda: One asking whether to retain the Maori seats, the other whether the number of Members of Parliament should be reduced to 100.
A couple of months ago, a news story dubbed “Lemonadegate” made international news. It involved the daughter of a New Zealander living in London, who was fined £150 for setting up a stand and selling lemonade without a permit. She was five-years-old.
Fresh water is an election issue. The export of bottled water has become the focus of an emotional debate that is being relentlessly politicised and propagandised.
A new survey, released this week by the ABS Bank, found that one in five New Zealanders are strongly opposed to National’s plan to lift the retirement age from 65 to 67.
New Zealand has a retirement income framework that, compared with the rest of the developed world, is closest to our ideal. However, that’s a low bar to clear. We can make things much better but we must start with impeccable, deep data.
They say a week is a long time in politics. So, it turns out, is an hour and a half. At 8.30 on Tuesday morning, Labour leader Andrew Little told reporters that he was not going to resign - “I’m going to fight”. 90 minutes later he was fronting a press conference announcing his resignation.
New Labour leader Jacinda Ardern is promising to run an election campaign characterised by “relentless positivity”. And, so far, there’s been an almost relentlessly positive response to her rise to the top. It appears that Ardern’s extraordinary elevation is going to lift this election campaign out of the ordinary, too.
Democracy has been described as a ‘fragile flower’. Indeed it is, and it's something we take for granted because our relatively young society has not yet experienced its collapse.
Until the passing of the Resource Management Amendment Act 2017 the business of territorial local authorities was conducted by the elected representatives of the citizens living in the particular area. That is no longer the case.
The 2017 election campaign has well and truly started with both the Green Party and New Zealand First launching major policies last weekend.
Loading ...
