The TV1 newsreaders were agog last week with the startling news that there might… only MIGHT… be a deal on Ihumatao about to be announced. They made a few implications and shadowed promises, but it was all speculation really. It is not exactly surprising that the main TV bulletin of
George One of the greatest private enterprise success stories during the last two years has been the growth of Rocketlab. During the 2018/9 financial year, this enterprise added $1.75bn to the New Zealand economy and supported 12,000 jobs. There was an article in the Guardian with reference
US president Donald Trump has stared down the mandarins of China and sealed a huge first win in his trade war with the communist state. The Chinese have blinked and handed the US an enormous range of concessions. But, while the deal is a yuge deal for America, it contains
What happens when you have a chronic housing shortage, too few state houses and a government that continually comes out with landlord unfriendly policies? I have watched landlord after landlord sell their rental properties over the last few years, citing various reasons, but just about all of them are to
Straight arrow Yesterday I came across a New Zealand “business owner” who tweeted support for the increase in the minimum wage and declared that they are already paying their employees a ” living wage.” Frustrated yesterday by ACTs tweet today saying that the raising of the minimum wage is detrimental to
Ten thousand mirrors form a spiral approx 3 km (2 miles) wide that winds around a skyscraper rising above the desert between Las Vegas and Reno. It is a billion-dollar memorial to man’s stupidity. It was supposed to soak up enough heat from the sun’s rays to
Credi, where credit is due, Countdown have successfully turned lemons into lemonade, finding various ways to profit from the Government’s plastic bag ‘save the turtles’ scam. Their latest scheme is to counter all the naughty customers taking off with their plastic baskets by turning around and selling plastic baskets
Smoke & Mirrors So I have been reflecting on how the CoL (and the Media Party) do their propaganda campaigns in relation to tax in general; a real gem is when they call them ‘levies’ not taxes and do so with straight faces. The most recent example was when Jacinda
The biggest problem with NZ First having scuppered Jacinda’s proposed Capital Gains Tax (CGT) is that the subject will never go away. Even if Jacinda adheres to her promise to never introduce it, the next Labour leader will bring the subject up again. It doesn’t matter what the
A few years ago, we were looking for an extra accountant for our practice. Applicants were in relatively short supply, but we were approached by an accountant living in Tauranga. He was qualified, had about 5 years experience, seemed nice enough and he was happy to relocate to Wellington. Also,
Merry Christmas from the COL. Another kick in the guts for both business and young people has been announced. The COL think that they are playing Santa Claus but what they are delivering is a lump of coal. Socialists don’t understand how business works just as they don’t
Press release: Hobson’s Pledge There is not the slightest justification for allocating any resource which is the common property of all New Zealanders on the basis of race, Hobson’s Pledge spokesman Don Brash said yesterday. In a deal announced Monday, Telcos will be able to bid for 160MHz
As you may be aware, Vernon Unsworth (hero of the Philippines cave rescue) recently lost a defamation case against Elon Musk, who had called him a “pedo”. Such are the vagaries of American defamation law that, even though the accusation was completely false, and Musk admitted as much, Unsworth lost
At first glance on paper legal cannabis should be a lucrative investment. Thanks to the addictive nature of the product once you have a customer you are likely to have them for life so repeat business is guaranteed. Even better there is also the medical side of the business which
Ladies and gentlemen, the 2020 election campaign has officially started, and it will be the longest campaign of your lifetime. After promising to build 100,000 houses (and failing) and promising to build a light rail system in Auckland (and making very little progress to date), the government has announced
Smoke & Mirrors Sunday was the day we all started paying GST on internet shopping. It’s New Zealand’s version of the ‘Amazon Tax’ which, according to the Labour Government, is supposed to level the playing field for domestic retailers. So the place you buy stuff from in Armenia
