NZ Politics
Daily News Roundup – 16 April 2021
National Party leadership Matthew Hooton (Herald): My message to National – and how to avoid another leadership fiasco (paywalled) Peter Dunne: National needs to sort out what it stands for before it thinks about leadership Grant Duncan: The National Party’s leadership woes Government Richard Harman: So Grant, what’s next?
‘Jackboot’ Jacinda’s Loose Lips Smear Another Minimum Wage Worker
It looks like Jacinda Ardern‘s loose lips in Parliament have smeared yet another minimum wage worker: First Security says the Government has misrepresented its efforts to ensure its managed isolation workers are getting regular Covid-19 surveillance tests. The company, contracted to provide security guards to some managed isolation
Slow Start for a Slow Train
It seems that Blind Freddy was right, and yet again the government was wrong. The much-vaunted and highly advertised Hamilton to Papakura slow train through the Waikato is a massive flop: It’s been a slow start for passenger numbers on the new Hamilton to Auckland train, with only
Face of the Day
The Immigration Minister has defended the lack of migrant workers, saying the Government’s doing everything it can. Fruit growers claim there are hundreds of millions of dollars worth of produce going to waste, and they can’t last another year without more seasonal workers. […] Minister Kris Faafoi told Mike
Does She Know She’s PM?
ACT Party ACT Leader David Seymour. “The Prime Minister should take some personal responsibility when things go wrong, instead of throwing members of the public under a bus.” says ACT Leader David Seymour. “The Government has extreme powers to keep us safe from COVID, but the Prime Minister is not
17 Schools Have Fewer Than 20 per Cent of Kids Regularly at School
Today’s revelation by the Government that there are 17 schools where fewer than 20 per cent of students are attending school regularly is just another illustration of the magnitude of New Zealand’s attendance crisis, National’s Education spokesperson Paul Goldsmith says. Four schools have fewer than 10 per
Vehicles Responding to Electrical Emergencies Prioritised
The Government must support a sensible law change that would allow lines companies to use flashing lights so traffic can give them priority when responding to electrical emergencies, National MP for Pakuranga Simeon Brown says. “Congestion in Auckland and across New Zealand is making it more difficult for lines companies
Homebuyers Need Action, Not Political Pondering
The Government’s admission that it’s considering forcing councils to open up more land for housing in the near future is the right idea, but New Zealanders need a Government that will take action rather than just think about it, Leader of the Opposition Judith Collins says. “It’s
More Long-Term Beneficiaries Means More Hardship
The latest figures from the Ministry of Social Development show the Government must urgently tackle long-term benefit dependency, National’s Social Development and Employment spokesperson Louise Upston says. “While the number of people on benefits has decreased slightly, the figures show more than 200,000 New Zealanders are still
Green Party Plans Significant Rewrite of Social Security Legislation
Green Party Green Party spokesperson for Social Development & Employment Ricardo Menéndez March The Green Party is putting a Member’s Bill into the ballot today which will be a significant step towards overhauling the Social Security Act. Green Party spokesperson for Social Development & Employment Ricardo Menéndez March will
Low Nicotine Ciggies Will Drive up Poverty
ACT Party ACT Social Development and Children spokesperson Karen Chhour. “New Zealand smokers will who can least afford it will spend more on their habit and in turn do harm to those around them if the Government mandates lower nicotine in tobacco,” says ACT Social Development and Children spokesperson Karen
Labour Is Failing on Mental Health across the Board
Labour is failing New Zealanders struggling with mental illness, National’s Mental Health spokesperson Matt Doocey says. “This isn’t a matter of the Government failing in just one area of mental health management and services. There are failures and incompetency across the board. “Wait times have ballooned under Labour
ëLarm Trial Shouldn’t Have Taken Ten Months
ACT Party ACT Leader David Seymour ACT Leader David Seymour has welcomed the Government’s decision to trial Datamine’s ëlarm with border workers. “We’ve been urging the Government to adopt ëlarm for 314 days now,” says Mr Seymour. “It shouldn’t have taken ten months for the Government
Government Infantilises the COVID Tracing App
We are all sick of this Government infantilising issues and speaking to us all like children. They’ve gone full retard now in releasing a new update for their snitch app: The NZ COVID Tracer app has a number of new features, including national statistics, a flashlight for scanning, and