Serious concerns are now being raised about the Prime Minister’s credibility. Allegations of gross misconduct by a staff member who had worked in her Parliamentary office have been circulating for months, yet she continues to claim that she was unaware they were of a sexual nature.
Those prepared to challenge the PM, now believe she has been misleading New Zealanders. This is a very serious issue, especially for Jacinda Ardern who has built her reputation on sincerity.
In spite of sacrificing the Labour Party President, the questions have not gone away and her credibility is now on the line.
It is little wonder that the ‘stardust’ is beginning to fall away from Jacinda Ardern.
Questions of credibility and competency are also emerging over policy decisions.
Just last week we raised concerns about the Government’s lack of action over New Zealand’s shocking suicide crisis – 685 people took their own lives in the year to June 30 2019, almost double our dreadful road toll of 372 deaths over that same period.
While May’s Budget allocation of $1.9 billion for mental health included $40 million for suicide prevention, we found that virtually no progress had been made.
The Prime Minister has now stepped up and announced her strategy. She has continued to refuse to adopt the suicide prevention targets recommended by her Mental Health Inquiry, and has instead created a new Suicide Prevention Office – that will not be fully operational until 2021. Another big government bureaucracy, with no targets and no accountability is her solution.
This is similar to her approach to KiwiBuild – Labour’s flagship answer to New Zealand’s housing affordability crisis. Their disastrous promise to build 100,000 new cheap homes over 10 years has now been officially “reset” – all targets have been scrapped, and with no goals and no accountability KiwiBuild is now being buried within a new government bureaucracy.
The Prime Minister is seriously out of step with reality if she thinks more committees and new offices will achieve anything.
Questions are also being raised about her plan to “reboot” the Taranaki region to fill the economic void created by her decision to close down the oil and gas exploration industry.
In March Jacinda Ardern announced a “roadmap” for a clean energy future for Taranaki. This was followed in May, by a pledge of $27 million for a ‘clean energy’ centre and $20 million for ‘clean energy’ research. With millions of taxpayers’ dollars already allocated to investigate ‘green’ hydrogen, the PM is signalling that this highly experimental technology can be a replacement for oil and gas.
The commercial use of hydrogen is, of course, not new. It became very popular in the 1930s when it was used for air transportation. The German airship the Hindenburg was perhaps the most famous of these pioneer airships. In fact, it was about to start using hydrogen not only for ballast, but also as a fuel to drive the rudder engines, when it suddenly burst into flames killing passengers and crew. This event contributed to public wariness over the use of hydrogen for transportation.
Hydrogen is the most abundant chemical substance on earth. It is highly flammable and when combined with oxygen, releases energy and water, making it attractive as a green fuel.
Broadly speaking, there are three main ways of producing hydrogen. Brown hydrogen is manufactured from fossil fuels using steam under high temperature and pressure, while grey hydrogen is similarly produced from natural gas. If the carbon dioxide by-product is ‘captured’, it is called blue hydrogen.
Green hydrogen, however, is produced by electrolysis – passing an electric current through water (H2O) splits it into its component parts of hydrogen (H2) and oxygen(O2). If renewable electricity from solar and wind is used in the process, the resulting hydrogen is a zero-emission fuel.
While some see green hydrogen as the holy grail of future energy production, manufacturing, storing, and transporting it on a commercial scale is still experimental.
Although hydrogen can be stored as a gas, liquid, or solid, it’s low energy density creates difficulties. If it is stored as a gas in reinforced high-pressure tanks, up to 20 percent of the energy content of the hydrogen is required for compression. If liquified, up to 40 percent of the energy content is used to pressurise then cool the gas to −253°C in order to store it in special cryogenic tanks. To store hydrogen in solid form, it is usually combined with other compounds, but again energy is needed to extract out the gas.
A discussion paper on the Government’s plan for green hydrogen has just been released and explains, “for hydrogen to succeed in New Zealand there are numerous significant challenges that need to be managed successfully – overcoming economic and policy uncertainty, attracting demand from a broad range of end users while technology matures and because costs are high, addressing investment and infrastructure needs, setting policy that stimulates demand, establishing standards and regulations, analysing lifecycle costs and changing public perceptions around safety.”
Their aim is to use renewable energy for electrolysis, to produce enough green hydrogen to “create significant export revenue”.
However, the discussion paper also points out, “There is currently no international market for hydrogen, and no common price.”
The paper, which lists hapu, iwi and Maori Trusts as partners in the scheme, explains there are significant risks: “Similar to natural gas, safety considerations are central and standards need to be developed to ensure wide-scale adoption of hydrogen can be achieved in a regulated and appropriate manner. Hydrogen is a non-toxic gas, but its high flame velocity, broad ignition range and low ignition energy make it highly flammable. This is partly mitigated by its high buoyancy and diffusivity, which causes it to dissipate quickly. It has a flame that is not visible to the naked eye and it is colourless and odourless, making it harder for people to detect fires and leaks.”
The Government is calling for public feedback on their hydrogen proposal, with submissions closing on Friday 25 October – full details can be seen HERE.
Let’s be honest about this – speculative technology is no substitute for an established and lucrative industry that is being destroyed by government policy.
Another industry that is being destroyed by government policy is farming.
Labour’s first salvo in their war against farmers came in the form of unattainable emissions targets in their Zero Carbon Bill. If passed in its present form it will seriously undermine the viability of the sector. Like the oil industry, the justification for their attack on farmers is the Prime Minister’s fixation with being seen as a global leader in climate change.
Labour’s latest offensive is through punitive new freshwater regulations.
A discussion document shows the potential cost of the proposed freshwater restrictions for dairy farmers is around $150,000 over ten years, for sheep and beef farmers almost $200,000, and for market gardeners $100,000.
All up it’s been estimated that Labour’s new regulations and compliance requirements would cost farmers an astonishing $1 billion over ten years – at least.
Labour wants all wetlands protected, new irrigation schemes banned, and land use changes – including for vegetable cropping – strictly controlled through resource consents.
All farmers will be required to have a ‘farm plan’ – estimated to cost the industry over $100 million – with regular inspections and monitoring of water quality.
The proposed changes appear to be fuelled by the demands of environmental extremists. They want every waterbody in New Zealand to be swimmable. That ridiculous standard conceals their real motivation which is to rid the planet of methane producing livestock.
The truth is that most Kiwis do not want to swim with eels in farmers’ streams, but instead prefer their local swimming pool or beach. But as a result of this green lunacy, hundreds of millions of dollars will be spent fencing livestock out of waterways on land that has been sustainably farmed for generations.
The new stock exclusion requirements cover wetlands, lakes, rivers, streams, creeks, and even drains, requiring a fencing setback of one metre minimum for smaller waterbodies and 5 metres for anything larger than a metre across. It will result in the effective confiscation of vast areas of productive farmland.
Labour claims that nitrogen run-off is the main problem and they are proposing an 85 percent reduction in nitrates in some catchments. Experts point out that this is unachievable and will essentially lead to the end of farming in many rural areas.
However, new research undertaken by a group including scientists and academics from NIWA, Ag Research, and Waikato University for Local Government New Zealand challenges Labour’s nitrate modelling. They say it’s not a reliable indicator of stream health and shouldn’t be used. They believe the presence of invertebrates in waterbodies is a better guide.
The hypocrisy of Labour’s attack on farmers is that the major polluters of New Zealand’s waterways are councils through urban stormwater run-off and sewerage spills.
Labour’s discussion paper foreshadows the introduction of a Resource Management Amendment Bill later this year that will include a new freshwater planning process: “Government-appointed freshwater commissioners with specialist skills would form a panel with local councillors, and tangata whenua-nominated representatives to consider council plans, hear submissions and make recommendations. There would be restricted avenues for appeal.”
This approach underlies the fundamental problem with the Ardern Government – it is more about politics than solutions.
Appointing Maori representatives onto freshwater commissions would not produce better outcomes. It would simply embed racism into the RMA.
This would conflict with New Zealand First’s election commitment to remove separate rights based on race from the RMA, not introduce them.
Public feedback on the Government’s proposed regulation of freshwater closes on Thursday 17 October – full details including the schedule of public meetings can be seen HERE.
Labour’s freshwater proposals came hard on the heels of the Waitangi Tribunal’s final report into Maori claims for freshwater. The inquiry, which began in 2012, found that Maori had rights to freshwater akin to ownership, that they should be given a percentage of all water rights allocations around the country or royalties, and that the RMA should require all freshwater bodies in New Zealand to be co-governed and co-managed by Maori.
The Tribunal also recommended that iwi leaders take a claim to the High Court to determine whether native title to freshwater exists in New Zealand’s common law.
For the record, as retired Judge and former Law Lecturer Anthony Willy explained: “At common law land including the land underneath water was regarded as a commodity that could be owned and transacted. Water was never regarded by the common law as a commodity in that sense. The courts recognised that water like air is not only vital to the survival of all species on the planet but is something in which humanity has no hand in creating. It therefore, like air, occupies a unique status in the eyes of the common law – it cannot be owned by anybody.”
The Waitangi Tribunal’s finding reinforces the fact that since its establishment in 1975, this taxpayer funded commission of inquiry exacerbates racism and division. It should be disbanded and its gravy train shut down.
Finally, the Prime Minister has just announced that New Zealand history will become compulsory in schools, to enable children to better understand the influences that have “shaped the nation”.
This week’s NZCPR Guest Commentator, Auckland-based freelance writer Michael Coote, provides a tribute to someone who played a major role in shaping our nation – New Zealand’s “founding father”, our first Governor Captain William Hobson, who died 177 years ago this week:
“No other person has so singularly influenced the course of modern New Zealand history. Hobson stood for equal rights in law and public policy. Yet in the 21st century Hobson seems to have become ungratefully forgotten by the very country that owes him so much.”
Let’s hope the new curriculum not only teaches children the importance of Governor Hobson’s legacy of equal rights for all citizens, but that it also protects them from the propaganda of tribal supremacists who continue to push for race-based rights in law and public policy.
THIS WEEK’S POLL ASKS:
Should Maori tribal groups be involved in decision-making over the control of fresh water?
*Poll comments are posted below.
*All NZCPR poll results can be seen in the Archive.
THIS WEEK’S POLL COMMENTS
| Involved in decision making but not actually making those decisions, and certainly not ‘owning’ the water. | Hans |
| As Charlie Brown would say “Good grief” !!! | Dick |
| I do not support apartheid. Learn from best practice abroad and use cost benefit analytics. However, if the disingenuous Clean Green NZ catchphrase is to have any credibility much “it will be fine” needs to be remedied. | Zoran |
| Not at all. Only means for them is the possibility to charge. | Peter |
| this system of giving virtually everything the bunch of halfcaste greedy so and so’s demand has got to stop UNLESS they are fully qualified in water management keep them out of any committee regarding water usage etc. | Richard |
| No Never. It is troubling that governments of all stripes are driving New Zealand into a deeper racial divide for no other reason than votes. Surely Governments do not believe social well being can be achieved long term by appeasement and racial privilege to a spoilt bunch of entitled maori spinning fairy tales. The lack of Government backbone is frightening. When the majority hit back they will wonder why! | Sam |
| Our water is part of an enormous, global, cyclical system. How someone/group can claim any kind of ownership of water is beyond belief. As responsible stewards of our environment, we do need to be mindful of our water quality, but ownership or control by tribal groups? No. | Jan |
| The PM is a liar as far as her knowledge on the sexual assault allegations. We can trust her like we can trust quicksand. Please resign Ms Ardern and go and look after your baby where you might learn commonsense, real moral authority and some wisdom because your cultural totalitarianism, climate hydrogen energy nonsense is bringing down the health and wealth of our country every week you are the so-called leader. | Monica |
| Maori have no right to water or any other natural resource such as air and airwaves but knowing this Government and the crooked Maori elite nothing is safe from those corrupt bastards. God help n z. | Ken |
| Why should they. | Bill |
| This is a matter for elected representatives to resolve. An open minded discussion needs to take place and the position of Maori is well known and almost totally based on their sole right to water ownership. So the answer is ” no”. | Mike |
| No, No, No, No, No! The Maori hierarchy (the Maori elite few), are already taking control of NZ seashores, thanks to a biased, Racist Labour Government, who are gifting NZ to Maori Hierarchy, even MORE blatantly than the the last National Govt. | MervB |
| They are biased when it comes to sound deductive reasoning. | Pierre |
| Not appropriate for all New Zealanders | Claire |
| NO – NO – NO – NO – and NO, Never | Richard |
| They cannot be trusted when it comes to “possessions” of any kind. They seem to want only to take, like a child before it grows up. | Ali |
| NO to an apartheid NZ | Kathy |
| They should not have any more say than ay other New Zealander | Peter |
| All New Zealanders should have equal rights. | MAURICE |
| To let them loose on an issue as important as this would be criminal. | Mike |
| No race based input into fresh water decisions that is NONE!!!!! | bud |
| NO,NO, and a thousand times NO. But this Maori led government will no doubt git it%u2019s own way. | Athol |
| nobody owns the water | Brian |
| Water today, the air we breath tomorrow, where will it stop. The answer, never. Slowly but surely, Maori elite will one day control New Zealand, they will dictate what can or cannot be done, NZ tax payers will be paying ‘Taxes’ to Maori for the privileged of living in NZ. I fear we are too far down the track to stop the rising tide. | fred |
| Absolutely ridiculous | Neil |
| Maori will only be satisfied when they own the whole country . That has been their plan all along . | Colleen |
| No resource should be controlled by any group based on race. | Murray |
| No and more no. They should be included like all other New Zealander with no special privileges given to a particular race. | Bill |
| Absolutely not – racism over natural assets is ridiculous | Gerry |
| Giving such involvement is another example of preferential treatment. My guess is such involvement, should it happen, will be funded by taxpayers. Should not happen in this way, Maori should join the queue like the rest of us and make their submissions accordingly. | David |
| NO! NO! NO! No tribes, castes or clans. The law should be based on the individual – the way of the West. No “free trade” with commufascist dictatorships either. They have to change – not us! | Don |
| Water belongs to everyone. God gave us water to keep us live and without it we die. | Kate |
| New Zealanders via their elected officials are the only people to control fresh water, that should be the start, the middle and the end of the discussion in a democratic society ! | John |
| we all own it | Allan |
| Please stop this racism. | Vaughan |
| Maori???? If your mother is of european ancestry and your father of part maori ancestry – what ethnicity are YOU ???? | wARWICK |
| They should only be involved if they are on an ELECTED body and therefore get there by merit ! We need intelligent conversation using qualified Science and NOT part time so called “experts” ! | Andrew |
| Why do we feel so powerless? I can foresee major trouble arising in the future. | Alan |
| NO! | Elizabeth |
| It’s everyone’s decision | Kevin |
| Absolutely not – like everything else they’ll want the lot, then we will be charged megadollars for it. Give them a little, and they aren’t happy. Leave them right out of it. | Craig |
| Never never never let the Maori IWI or tribal groups be part of making decisions about the control of fresh water. They will out to get more money from the long suffering Tax payer. I am sick and tired of moaning Maori about how badly they have been treated over the last 180 years since the now much maligned Treaty of Waitangi. They were war like cannibals before the white man came and been more than enough compensated for the so called wrongs by the awful Colonists who they forfeited the land to the Crown because they disobeyed the laws in force at the time. | Colin |
| no not in anyway | Steven |
| No and a million times NO | Lionel |
| No racism | David |
| hell no | norman |
| Nobody owns the water. Our elected Government should have total control. Any individual may be elected to Government. | Ian |
| Definitely not, water like air should belong to no one, it is a natural resource for all. | Colleen |
| What a joke!! | Ron |
| We are or should I say all New Zealanders & the way things are going, racism is more rife now because of what is going on. | Tony |
| They may control all the water they make. Leave the rest alone. | Murray |
| Water is a substance that is for all people to use and should be free to everyone and controlled by the people of NZ through legislation by the elected government | Andrew |
| pure racism | Donal |
| No, never | Cliff |
| Water….comes from the sky, and moves THROUGH property…..how can anyone OWN it. | Lionel |
| Reverse racism is as bad as we can go | Ian |
| no no no | Anthony |
| Water is a universal life-giving requirement for the sustaining of life on the planet and no single entity should possess special powers with regard to the sustaining of existence in this country. | John |
| It is but a continuation of race based power grabbing with no justification either in historic or contemporary terms. | Owen |
| Absolutely not. They only want to put their fingers in the till. No one can own water. It belongs to all. | Ronma |
| This country is giving Maori too much say and separating us all, we are all the same in my eyes but the higher Maori idiots are spoiling our country. The word Maori is starting to get on peoples nerves including some Maori. | Barbara |
| The treaty made Maori subjects of the British crown, not co governing partners. NO, tribal groups should be treated like the rest of NZers when it comes to these decisions. | Willy |
| The time has come to put a stop to the racist involvement of Maori in decision making they should have no special status in. | Derek |
| Assuming most fresh water originates from sea evaporation outside NZ, where is the connection to “special” people with a bloodline now less than 50% Maori? No doubt our new school history syllabus will explain to all. | David |
| Absolute rubbish | Dave |
| not unless an equal amount of non Maori are involved. | Jamie |
| They are citizens | Jo |
| Air will be next!! | John |
| Maori tribal groups shouldn’t be involved officially in any aspect of life where control is exerted on the population as a whole. | Stan |
| No body owns the water.It’s like the air and they are both essential to life. | Morris |
| their just looking for another hand out | Tony |
| Individuals whom are of maori descent will probably be involved in these discussions. But to have a” block” of maori will only lead to ongoing hui up and down NZ. We are all reliant on fresh water and yes we pay a cost to ensure it is safe. But to have maori tribal group’s demand co – governance and payment by using cultural threats and blackmail for just about everything now days will , I believe lead to a civil outbreak in time to come!!! Enough is enough New Zealand, le | Darryl |
| No !! If the tribal groups are allowed to lay their mitts on fresh water then this will be another serious push towards total control. We have seen too many times in the past that this is not about this much promoted ‘partnership model ‘ but to render all authority to a small group of tribal leaders who will exploit their newly gained position of power and influence to run our country as they see fit. Signs of what we can expect are to be seen everywhere. If unhindered , NZ will be unrecognizable in 10 years time and we will be forced to live under a Apartheid system to be treated as second class citizens. And all that thanks to our pc ridden cronies in the established parties. They are responsible for this treachery and we all can be certain that they have been handsomely bribed for this treason. | Michael |
| Just more political racism. If they are involved they won’t stop until they have full control Time to stop all this trying to appease because they are Maori | Frank |
| Water is critical to human existence. No group or individual should have control of a substance of such importance. | Maurice |
| Absolutely NOT ! | James |
| No one owns water, it falls for free . | William |
| We have to end this sort of racial bias in our society! It just creates further racial division, leading to anger and hatred! | Hugh |
| No more than any other racial group, which means no racial privilege for anybody | Frank |
| No never!! | Martin |
| only as individuals | Diana |
| Again it is pure racism practiced by both governments but particularly Arderns, Oh how I long for the return to a democracy where all citizens are treated equally. | Eric |
| Waster is for everybody not just for the so called “maori” | Mike |
| It will just take them further in the direction of separate sovereignty which success governments have stupidly given oxygen to and legislated towards, This has raised maori hopes in claiming sovereignty was never seeded to the crown, when it was. | Dene |
| History has shown us that anything the Maori’s become involved in, gets stuffed up. NZ first Governor Gray was his surname, he referred the Maori’s as natives , as far as I’m concerned they still are. | Don |
| Absolutely not! If we are open people under the Treaty of Waitangi, then everyone, irrespective of ethnicity, should have equal rights, with no special treatment for Maori. This government is hell-bent on pandering to Maori, giving them more money and privileges, partly to retain the support of their Maori caucus. One country, one law for all! | Laurence |
| Maoris have no more rights to ownership of water than any other New Zealander. They keep on pushing in the hope they will get some of the things they ask for. | John |
| Nobody owns the fresh water, and there are no full blooded Maori, that can lay claim to the control of it in New Zealand. | John |
| Just another grab at control! | Bruce C |
| To suggest that any maori groups (tribal or otherwise) should be involved in ANY decision-making over the control of fresh water is an outrage. No race within the ranks of New Zealand citizens is superior or has any decision-making rights that other citizens do not have. So-called maori (there are indeed no full-blooded maori in existence) are the part-descendants of the stone-age Polynesians who were the major occupiers of New Zealand at the time of the Treaty of Waitangi and the treaty gave these people who signed equal rights under the law with other (at the time) British subjects. They, and their offspring, have no superior rights to any other New Zealand citizens. Further, because their culture at the time of the treaty was that of a stone-age people who had not even invented a bow and arrow or a wheel, they have little to pass on to the advantage of present-day life in this country except their contribution to the life of the country that every other citizen has. There is no superiority or special wisdom to be gained from the stone age, or canibalism, slavery, or any other of the primitive and rather unkind practices of those days. | Rob |
| Where has ‘we are one’ and ‘you are us’ gone? Setting up the Waitangi Tribunal has definitely encouraged racist attitudes. What’s to bet our ‘mixed race’ people will be writing the NZ History curriculum? | Juliet |
| Absolutely not. Until such time that they stop this nonsense of them and us they shouldn’t have any say. | Mike |
| The gap between urban and rural is starting to get dangerous. Already farmers are getting together to reject the bill and will refuse to cooperate. Unfortunately farmers developed the tools to monitor water and soil testing and these have been used against them by sanctimonious hypocritical urban extremism. You cannot test water for toxic chemicals that kill marine life, yet… In Christchurch for example there is an aquifer of raw contaminated sewage flowing underneath the city. Auckland ejects 1 million cubic meters of raw contaminated sewage into the manukau harbour every year. And in Napier you can’t collect shellfish because of raw contaminated sewage containing typhus flowing down the coast from a broken and outdated waste water infrastructure. In most cities in nz old water piping infrastructure and old telecom cables are encased in asbestos. Farmers and maori farmers will not deny their animals fresh running water. Urban iwi have already lost their connection with the land when they sold it. The outcome in the near future thanks to labour will be higher milk and meat prices. Enticing foreign meat into the country. Hows that for zero carbon…when carbon is the second most abundant element in the human body, after water. | Mark |
| No tribal entities should be acknowledged let alone have a voice in politics quell this post modern Marxist attitude before it leads to bloodshed | Jeff |
| Definitely no. To give racial group control over an essential and free-falling (rain) commodity is sheer lunacy. This whole idea must be stopped pronto. | Brian |
| Maori have no more right to resources pre-existing their arrival than any other group. | Margaret |
| If the Maori are given special decision rights then so should everyone else! Funny how Maori’s special rights are not branded as racism by politicians and the courts! The Marxist Greens and Labor supporters are determined to drive this country into the ground, all in the name of political power. The white people are portrayed as inferior and greedy – look at Zimbabwe to see where that attitude took that country – a country of affluence and wealth for all, to one that was driven into the ground by a Marxist despot and tribal dictatorship. The similarities leading up to NZ today are there to view. A great part of NZ citizens rights were removed by Helen Clark when she removed access to the Privy Council, so now we are reliant on a Supreme court which appears to be politically influenced. So where and how does this end? | Rex |
| With prior attempts by Maori in respect of control of seabed and foreshore, I would view such involvement as simply providing a vehicle for Maori to pursue their own vested interests | Rob |
| This madness has to stop. No one in the present government has New Zealand’s interests foremost. The behaviour, decisions and actions of political leaders is treasonable. | Neil |
| It is unthinkable that preferential rights or water ownership is given or applied to anyone. It is a life form ingredient which belongs to everyone on earth. Any proposal by Maori to suggest otherwise should be quashed immediately. I regret to have to say that their arrogance is beyond belief. | Chris |
| it seems to me, that every week with these polls, that we are asked if our minority maori groups should be part of something that will affect all New Zealanders. Don’t we all belong to the same country, and shouldn’t we all be part of any decisions made that will affect our future. | William |
| Air and Water do not belong to anybody. They are elements of nature that cannot be contained or controlled. Hands off! | Robert |
| This is again political racist propaganda | Neville |
| No, No, No! | Mitch |
| There is no way they can make impartial decisions. Its like telling a kid in a lolly shop “don’t touch” | Phil |
| It%u2019s divisive and racist Water can not be owned- it can be allocated where necessary (RMA) | Allan |
| Unfortunately the Maori Elite who make all of the demands do not represent their own, now mixed race people. They only represent their own GREED & SELF INTEREST. Pathetic politicians give them more & more, & so they ask for more & more. When NZrs wake up & change their voting habits, the cycle will be broken. As for the teaching of NZ history in schools, one can only cringe at the version that will be taught. Yes, the kids will be taught how the land was ALL stolen, & how the NASTY pakeha herded woman & children into churches, then burned them to the ground, even though the church is still standing. The result of all this will be MORE outrageous claims by the Maori Elite, until ALL the land, that will be by then covered in pine-trees, is returned to them.. Hard work is involved in running a farm, so they won’t want the now freehold land until the farmers have been forced off & the trees have been planted. Think I’m joking. JUST WATCH THIS SPACE | A.G.R. |
| No bloody way. they think that they should own everything due to traditional rights. What about every one elses rights. Tell them all to f**k off back to their grass huts and skirts. | Graham |
| No, No, No, a thousand times NO!! | Jim |
| belongs to all | Jill |
| Absolutely NOT! Water is essential to life and should not be controlled by one race – this is RACISM! | Sylvia |
| No, it again comes down to racism. | Rick |
| Water is the source of life and is not owned by individuals or separate groups. It belongs to all New Zealanders. | Catherine |
| Absolutely not. This is clear act of racism by this Labour govt, patronising the maori’s again. They are a minority number in this country and do not have any more rights than the majority. As the whole population knows, no one “Owns” the water, no where in the world does anyone own the water, except in NZ under a Labour govt. if the maoris get their way. The next thing they will want is to “Own the “Air”, clouds, sunshine, wind, fish,all wildlife and anything else that nature provides. If this inept govt are so willing to agree to this outrageous claim, sell it to them for a few billion $ and in a few years time, tell them that it was sold too cheap at the time, now we “Claim” several Billion more, plus as time passes, the same claim will repeated, …..forever !! This current labour govt are a total failure in every thing they do…example “Kiwi Build”, they reveal themselves as a convincing group of “Not fit for purpose” politicians ! | David |
| NO! If there is a vote and they are voted on then fair enough,but appointed,NEVER. | Peter |
| another ludicrous suggestion!! | Irvine |
| This is a national issue that should be decided by democratically elected representatives of the people at large without Maori being able to skew decisions in their own interests | Russell |
| NO NO NO !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! | Bryan |
| Absolutely not!! | Ron |
| Water belongs to no one, we share it all equally, there is no reason race should even be mentioned in this discussion. | Steve |
| It’s the government’s job to make these decisions for all New Zealanders (and “New Zealanders” includes Maori) | Terry |
| As for any other local body | Keith |
| No !! They never give up do they. They want to own and control everything. I’m fed up with the constant demands. | Carole |
| The comment that water like air is essential for our existence and cannot belong to anybody is patently true | Clinton |
| If water is owned by anyone they should be able to be sued when there is a lack of water i.e.drought and when there is damage due to flooding. | s |
| Definitely not!! This is just another step toward the “big takeover.” | Janet |
| sick and tired of these low IQ oxygen thieves | chris |
| Definitely NOT | Trevor |
| What Next!!! | Maureen |
| If them why not other ethnic groups? | Nev |
| No comment is needed. Water and air, belong to the fundamental ‘rights’ of all life on this planet. No one can own it. For our Maori to think they can, is another concept from ‘crazy-land’ of the Loony-Left and their drive to ‘divide-and-conquer’, Pure ‘Marx-ism’! | Ced |
| More racism they are only in it for what they can gain | Gareth |
| NZ goes forward as one country. We are all in this together not with seperate agendas | Nicholas |
| Water belongs to New Zealand, not to a certain group of people. | Neels |
| NO | Bryan |
| I see no future democratic majority decision making if the tribes are involved in this process! | Cyril |
| The government & local councils should be the only authorities involved with ANY water control, care & maintenance of this life giving substance. Only Councils with elected members only should be involved. | Nick |
| No one owns water. A naturally occurring product. | John |
| Not as Iwi but would be good if they exercised their rights as New Zealanders. Maori don,t need special rights. Just need to get off their butts and exercise those we all have | Terry |
| nobody owns the water in N Z where do maori get all this rubbish from ? | Graeme |
| We all became equal under the Treaty of Waitangi. | George |
| If Maori tribal groups get involved in decision making on the control of fresh water they will immediately want payment for their time spent considering it and then vast amounts of money for supplying it. They should have no more influence over the decision making than than all other N.Zers. | Richard |
| Decisions should be made by people who are knowledgeable in that area, nothing to do with a particular race membership. | Sue |
| Water is for all, it’s a totally natural resource. So no, Maori have no more claim than any other ethnic group. | Brian |
| This is another example of just how stupid this Country is becoming.Maori want the air as well and useless politicians like Ardern and her rabble keep giving to Maori which in reality represents crime,child and welfare abuse,school truancy,and substance abuse. Just a despicable breed of whatever | Don |
| No particular group should hold sway over other groups. It’s bad enough that we’re in danger of losing our beaches and salt water, now we have to have a self-interested group involved in decision-making over fresh water. This sort of nonsense engenders antagonism. | Jenny |
| More bloody nonsense. | Lloyd |
| Absolutely not. We have one government in NZ. Maori have members . why should they have twice the say over water.? | Frank |
| All New Zealanders are represented by our elected Government representatives, including Maori. Unelected, race-based representation has no place. | Colin |
| This should be a inclusion NOT seclusion of all groups are to to have their say. It would seem that Labour are hellbent on making one group more important than others. | Carl |
| Agree with everything you have said!! | Sandra |
| We need less racist rules and laws, not more. | Andrew |
| Absolutely not, you know where that is leading! Increased costs, rates, regional rates, power, you name it. | Peter |
| They should be involved but only to the same extent as ALL other interested groups in our NZ society. | |
| Only elected persons should be involved in such decisions which affect us all. For goodness sake keep the scrapping Iwi out of such policy making. | Graeme |
| We are ALL EQUAL so WHY do RACE POLICIES EVEN EXIST.WAKE UP N.Z. jacinda is giving MORE rights to iwi than OTHER EQUAL N.Zealanders.ITS TIME ALL RACE BASED POLICIES Were DISMISSED & the Waitangi treaty which maoris signed was dismissed as what iwi are claiming in 2019 DIDNT EXIST 200 years ago. | Cindy |
| These people are a small minority of our population and have no more say or rights than anyone else ,in saying that there are NO full blooded Maoris | John |
| Equality isn’t just a word! | Dot |
| Only as part of the whole decision making process along with everyone else. | Chris |
| Never. Enough of this MOARI RACISM! We either live together or we finish off what the British started. Their choice. | Mark |
| Decision making should be a right of all New Zealanders. Race or creed should not be a factor. | Dennis |
| No but to the extent that everyone has an equal say | Richard |
| Maori want to make a grab for everything: it’s naked greed. They attempt to justify it on the specious basis of a “treaty partnership”, a falsehood which seems to have become mainstream dogma. Bit by bit, this country is fracturing into race-based separatism. | Graham |
| Nobody owns the air that we breath and the water that flows freely through our lands. They are both vital to civilisation existence and have been in existence since the evolution of mankind. | Trevor |
| More racial nonsense | IAN |
| Everybody should be involved | Jim |
| I say yes BUT the tribal groups should restrict their say to the control of fresh water on their land. NOT the fresh water on land that is not theirs. Farmers etc should have their own say on controls. BACK off Government | RICHard |
| Maori can have people elected to local and regional councils through usual democratic means. | David |
| They can even bring up their kids | Brian |
| Hell no !!! The country wouldn’t be able to afford their fees or is this just another way to ensure that the gravy train for income continues forever. | Barry |
| WE are one country and one people.There fore let the elected politicians and Councillors decide | John |
| Under the Treaty, we are one people. Why special treatment for Maori? | Tony |
| The water and also the air belong to no one and should be left alone. | John |
| They will want the lot- cant happen. its shared responsibility. so yes & no. | Mike |
| Hell no nor any other matter of national importance to the citizens of this nation. No one owns the water. We elect our representatives and by default the current lot are making a huge and negligible mess of the management of this country and it’s people. Maori have no place in decision making, no right greater than any other Joe Citizen. | Carol |
| Racism at its finest. | Graeme |
| Of course not -they are not elected! It seems to me that some people have almost no idea of what democracy is really about. Assets like beaches and water should be owned by everyone. Both parties seem equally as bad in this area. | Roger |
| No One owns the water, so why should Maori. The activists will want to own it and collect revenue from it. | Frank |
| Water is everybody’s right and should not be controlled by political bodies | Ian |
| As is said this is creating racism , no body owns the water and should remain so | Karen |
| Slowly they are taking over with Jacinda’s help. Everyone has a right to vote but Maori shouldn’t be shown favouritism. in water rights or anything else. I thought Jacinda would be a good leader, I have now changed my mind. I have no idea who I shall vote for next, but it wont be Labour | Kerin |
| Not as a separate body. | Geoffrey |
| This present Govt have gone mad they are like a ship with no rudder so go in any direction | Russell |
| Of course not. Especially if it’s about if they then say they own the water. Which means they own the rain and the clouds and hence the weather. Where does it end ? | Andrew |
| I agree that water like air is owned by no body | Yvonne |
| Most definitely not! | Terry |
| Absolutely not.. Maori are just settlers like the rest of us living here in NZ albeit they arrived here a few hundred years before the English did. Water belongs to NO one. | Wayne |
| Racism again | Michael |
| Everyone in New Zealand should be involved – as we are ONE New Zealand. I see the potential, in the long term, to claim ALL and control ALL of New Zealand’s fresh water, just as they are doing to our foreshore and sea bed. Have a good look at Robert Mogarbi ‘s track record. There-in lies the answer. | Stuart |
| NEVER,NEVER,NEVER,You get the picture? | Clark |
| Absolutely not. Nobody owns the water. It’s long overdue for us all to be treated the same and a stop put to the racial racist divisions that seem to be growing by the year. There should be no special anything for Maori. We are all citizens of this once great country which is going downhill as we speak. | Helen |
| no race based politics ever we are going to end up like Rhodesia with all this pandering to Maori, Dump the Waitangi Tribunal. treaty said we are all equal under the crown | Nigel |
| This separatism has got to stop or this country will continue to stagger from one race based disaster to the next, and we will never be able to present a single face to the world. All this racially inspired rubbish does is create anger on the part of the bulk of non-maori New Zealanders. | Roy |
| Another step toward division and separatism based on race and driven by greed. | Lawrie |
| Of course not. Water belongs to us all. But it will happen with our current House of Clowns , sorry, representatives. The printed media, T.V. news and National Radio are having their decisions made for them by the current mob so just add water to the list. | Bruce |
| But I do think a group should be set up to work out how to fix them from pollution. The Maori’s should apply to be on that group the same as everyone else. We have a lot of Maori”s who do go into groups like council’s etc so why do they want special rights. Bet if we the “White’s” said the same we would be called racist I can never see the difference | Cherryl |
| When will this racial division stop next the Iwi supremacist will be staking claim to the air we breath because only colonialists create air pollution as Maori don’t drive cars vehicles and emit zero emissions. Once again the minority run the country. | Mike |
| No more than anybody else, in a democratic society. | Chris |
| all nzers | Helen |
| It’s apartheid! There should be no ‘special’ status extended that is based upon race or culture. If any additional ‘influence’ is to be conceded it should only be done on the basis of credible expertise (e.g. scientific, supported by empirically validated data). | Christopher |
| All reference to race should be removed from any legislation. | Wayne |
| Like the Europeans, they are immigrants, who showed no mercy to the people that were here before them. It’s about time this poisonous COL were removed never to be seen in the beehive again. | Merryl |
| Appropriately educated water management personnel are required on a central authority (national body). NZ is too small to have this done effectively at regional level. We need many reservoirs for when there are fewer rainy days. | Stan |
| Just more Racist demands by non democratic Maori supremacists. | Anon |
| Racism should be illegal. No special treatment for anyone based on race. Definition of Maori should be changed to be more rational and most of these problems would vanish. | Laurie |
| Maori want to own all land, water, air and next the moon. They are greedy and will keep coming back for more gravy until a government has the guts to stop them | Kevin |
| When ever they are involved in any decision making there is chaos, all because their motive is money and control | David |
| In a recent hui I was wanting to extend my jetty on Lake Rotoiti and was asked to fill out a 15 pages on how by putting two poles in the Lake bed I was going to upset the eco system etc. Fish life, bird life. | Hone |
| Maori can get involved in the same manner as ALL OTHER KIWIS | Kelvin |
| no way | owen |
| Absolutely not, what’s happened to our one people? | Graeme |
| they should take part in the process of cleaning up our fresh/sea water under the same rules as everybody else in this country. We are one people….or should be!! | David |
| Definitely not. | Geoffrey |
| never | paul |
| Not at the expense of all nz citizens | Jeff |
| If they did that we will be wearing meters on our faces so we can pay for the amount of water drunk and air breathed | Colin |
| They will only obstruct the process for their own greedy purposes. | Graeme |
| It is public policy issue and race based | John |
| That would be racially prejudicial to people other than maoris. | John |
| Most definitely not.In fact I would recommend that the present Government be kept well away from it too. One is as trustworthy as the other. | Terry |
| NO! The Treaty of Waitangi gave Maori rights and privileges EQUAL to those of other British citizens. What part of EQUAL don’t they understand? | Joyce |
| No more than any other elected representatives | Hilary |
| This government is ruining the country the sooner we have a change the better there are 2 articles in this letter that are bang on | Peter |
| ‘We are one people ‘ – nothing more needs to be said nor attention to any arguments raised paid. | Dick |
| Unless specifically qualified, Maori groups should be consulted on nothing. Just like the rest of us. | Rod |
| The Labour Government is advocating continuing segregation as a requirement and way of life in this country. This must make us the last country in the developed world to insist on racially based decision making while claiming to be equal under the law. | Max |
| Apartheid in NZ. No one group should have more or fewer rights than any other. | Geoff |
| If I wanted NZ to fail……… | Fiona |
| Is this a labour gov or a Maori gov this gov seems to be giving to Maori left right and center will it rewrite history to suit the maori | Jimmy |
| Water belongs to man! Any group involved in decision making must be free of making race based policies. | Chris |
| Any ‘tribal groups’ are no more representative of NZ than any other so-called ‘groups’ | Coral |
| Certainly not! Maori Tribal groups should not be involved in governmental decisions any more than Jo Blow in the street. When is Col3 going to wake up and realise to the destructive damage they are doing to this country of ours? | Robyn |
| More money to the tribal elite at a cost to ordinary hardworking New Zealanders | Laurie |
| Maori (Iwi) should not have separate and special rights under any NZ laws. Any such laws based on ethnicity are simply racist and are in most civilised countries unlawful. Obviously this country is uncivilised and is being pushed back to the savage stone age era of pre-European settlement! | Alan |
| I am 1/8 Ngaphi. I do not believe in Racism, even if it benefits me to do so | Tony |
| Absolutely not – as already said, the water, like the air, belongs equally to all – thus there should not be any special decision making by any racially biased group. | Suzanne |
| No! – they should not be involved in anything – particularly where a resource, which we all depend on for our very survival, is concerned. | Scott |
| New Zealanders need to take back the country from these racist zealots before it%u2019s too late. All we get in the media these days is maori this and maori that. How long will it be before the name New Zealand is tossed on the racist bonfire? | Chris |
| A big NO! They should not be involved as tribal groups in anything that can be labelled Separatist or any likely to lead to Separatism! Pre-European tribalism is simply not compatible with living in contemporary New Zealand society! | Frank |
| Never we are all entitled to fresh water and nobody owns it. | Laurel |
| I think most control of resources should belong to the vast majority as it is democratically decided then. | Ray |
| Definitely not. Maori are taking over by stealth. Our country New Zealand is now being maorified and i’m all haka ed out. Now they want to teach our history which appears to be how bad maori were treated by new settlers. History today will depict only one side and not both sides. Unfortunately its too late to stop all the fake stories. | Carol |
| Definitely not as tribal groups. This would be another divisive racist ploy which Labour appears to encourage and embrace in a very unhealthy manner. This country and it’s people are suffering inexcusably under Arderns leadership. Never has it sunk to this level. | Anon |
| We are past “caveman times”…decision for all New Zealanders on an EQUAL BASIS. H2O is one the fundamental molecules of Human Life . | CTH |
| To provide some balance, to be fair. | JOHN |
| Separatism – racism. Anti New Zealand as a country of many races living in harmony for the good of the Country and its people equally. | Adrian |
| No way. No one should be appointed to any governmental committee based on race. | Robert |
| Would Maori be suitably qualified to make informed decisions or would it become just another farce extorting into the tribal elites greedy paws money | Trevor |
| Definitely not | Marinda |
| We are all New Zealanders. This just creates a racist society | Kate |
| Are we not “one people”! | Jim |
| why introduce racism again and again?? | Gerard |
| We New Zealanders should all be involved/included in talks about our fresh water. It is remiss to not involve all in a fresh water referendum. | David |
| Absolutely not! Maori do not own water. No-one owns water. They should have the same rights over control and allocation as everyone else. | Chris |
| Labour’s plan for water is extremist. They have become stooges for Greenpeace. And on hydrogen – they are bonkers. They will waste so much taxpayers’ money on the mad scheme until one day sanity will prevail and the whole man-made climate change campaign will be seen as a big con and scrapped. | Susan |
| Labour’s pandering to Maori rights activists is pathetic. They need to stand up for equal rights. | Andrew |
| Michael Coote’s article is spot on – good luck with the commemoration on Saturday! I suspect Maori rights activists will take over the curriculum and equal rights won’t get a look in! | Murray |
| No to Maori control of fresh water. No to hydrogen. No to a Labour Government. | Brian |