Category: Politics
Is it just me or do we face a real peril? As part of our survival genes we humans see threats everywhere. That is why we are suckers for charlatans peddling fears. But as MPs are fond of saying “just because I am paranoid does not mean they are not out to get me”. So should we worry about the prospect of a Labour/Green government?
The New Zealand Centre for Political Research has long been concerned at the extent to which the ownership and control of communal resources are being transferred to private iwi corporations - without the public really being aware of what is going on. Under the guise of the Treaty of Waitangi settlement process, billions of dollars worth of cash and assets are being transferred from public ownership.
If the Labour Party’s new leader retains their full confidence and support, by Christmas 2014 he could well be our next Prime Minister. What do we know about David Cunliffe and his ideas?
The recent clamour for capital gains tax, like so many cries from the mob throughout history, stems from envy and ignorance. But first, let me (totally wasting my time in doing so) say that as a permanent investor, I'm not talking my own book. These taxes don't affect me.
Last week New Zealanders saw yet another example of minor parliamentary parties, that secure only a fraction of the vote in a general election, having disproportionate power under MMP. In such circumstances, instead of proportional representation, which advocates of MMP argue is a cornerstone value, the system serves up disproportional representation and policy compromise.
Last week the World Economic Forum published its Global Competitiveness Report, ranking 148 countries on their productivity and prosperity. For the first time, New Zealand appeared in the top 20 at 18th place, compared with the 23rd last year and 25th the year before. Australia dropped out of the top 20, to 21st place.
Tribal leaders continue to make on-going demands for new rights and privileges based on claims of Treaty partnership and Maori sovereignty. The question that needs to be asked is whether such partnership and sovereignty claims are valid. The first example, which uses the Treaty partnership argument, is the situation in the Far North where iwi leaders are claiming guardianship rights over the region - “as affirmed in Te Tiriti o Waitangi as Treaty partners”.
The sudden resignation of Labour Leader David Shearer last Thursday has thrown the spotlight onto Labour Party politics. After just 20 months in the job, he decided to call it quits explaining that he no longer enjoyed the full confidence of his caucus colleagues. Some clearly believed he was not capable of leading the Party to victory in 2014.
State-owned energy company Meridian Energy is likely to list on the New Zealand stock exchange in October as the government takes the next step in the partial privatisation of state-owned assets. The company has now finalised a contract with the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter shareholders Rio Tinto and Sumitomo for lower priced power until January 2017 - the smelter uses 40 percent of the Meridian’s generating capacity.
In a year or so, voters will be choosing their political party to become the next government. One of the policy issues on the table is electricity. The Labour and Green parties have announced a policy to effectively nationalize privately and publicly owned companies by controlling their prices and their profits.
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