In promising to be New Zealand’s most open and transparent government ever, Labour has one key challenge: reform the Official Information Act. This vital piece of machinery for democracy is in terrible disrepair, and the Government has promised to rewrite it for the modern age, but so far are stalling on this. The urgent need …
One of the most important, and scathing, critiques of Jacinda Ardern’s Government was published this week by senior political journalist Andrea Vance. She reveals how the current administration has become adept and determined at keeping information secret and the public in the dark about crucial issues. You can read her piece here: This Government promised …
The National Party has a major problem with standards, especially amongst its MPs and election candidates. The latest controversies involve the resignation of their longest-serving MP Nick Smith over an employment dispute, and allegations of abhorrent behaviour by election candidate Jake Bezzant. The party has been beset by a series of scandals in recent times, …
The National Party is currently facing questions about the quality control processes in its candidate selection. Liam Hehir reports on his experience at the grass roots of the party, and puts forward some suggestions for reform. On the question of whether the National Party has a culture problem, my answer would be yes. It …
Should we give more power to the politicians so that they can get things done? It’s an increasingly popular idea in New Zealand that we should hold elections every four years, rather than three, so Governments can implement more change. This week the Act Party gave the idea another push with the release last Saturday …
A new analysis of the careers that MPs held before they were elected reveals New Zealand’s 53rd Parliament represents an extremely diverse range of work and life experiences. The research, by BlacklandPR and the Democracy Project, identified over 200 different careers, and over 500 individual jobs among Parliamentarians. The five most popular careers for MPs …
The hypocritical actions of political leaders throughout the global Covid pandemic have damaged public faith in institutions and governance. Liam Hehir chronicles the way in which contemporary politicians have let down the public, and explains how real leadership means walking the talk. During the Blitz, when German bombs were falling all over London, the …
New Zealand is not the only country with a three-year term of Parliament, but there aren’t many others. Most countries have longer terms, with theoretically less of a democratic check on political power. Most other countries also have some combination of: a bicameral legislature, a supreme constitution, strong judicial review of legislation, binding citizens initiated …
Are Jacinda Ardern and her colleagues a roadblock to transformation? Josiah Banbury takes a look at why the new Labour Government is going to retain the status quo rather than fix the problems in society. The Labour Party cruised to a comfortable win in the 2020 election, Jacinda Ardern is extremely popular and the …
This is a talk given by Colin James to the Wellington Club on 3 November 2020 I titled this talk ‘Beyond Jacinda’ not because I think the Prime Minister is transitory. Jacinda Ardern has demonstrated the requisite skills and resilience to see through this second term and, if she wants, have a fair shot …
The incoming new government can be transformational, especially with help from the Greens. According to health commentator Ian Powell this is especially apparent in the health sector. In the lead up to the general election I was predicting a Labour-Greens coalition with, as a second option, a Labour majority government. The first was based on …
There’s a debate raging about how serious the Government’s Covid-19 border testing botch-ups are. Many Labour partisans are calling complaints and media investigations into border management a beat-up and overly-aggressive. They claim problems at the border are being exaggerated, with testing failures of minor importance in the government’s overall success in dealing with the pandemic. …
Forget about the textbooks, the current border control debacle involving the Ministry of Health gives a better lesson in how government departments really work. Former Deputy Chief Economic Advisor at the Treasury, Tony Burton, examines how the bureaucracy fails to serve the politicians. In the days after the Nazis surrendered in 1945 the allies …
Has the election been saved from becoming another victim of Covid-19? Quite possibly. The issue of when to hold the election had come under serious scrutiny due to the increased restrictions and changed focus necessitated by the outbreak of community transmission of Covid-19. There were major problems with how democratic and adequate the electoral process …
When Parliament sits next Tuesday, the Prime Minister will finally meet her match. Judith Collins and Jacinda Ardern are opposites in just about every respect. Yet they have the same basic appeal. Ardern and Collins are as much cultural icons as they are political leaders. Each represents a different side of the New Zealand character, …
My house is currently supplied electricity by Meridian. As soon as I can change I will because Meridian spilled water to hike electricity prices. They got consumers to spend an extra $80 million on power unnecessarily. Clever them. The Electricity Authority has called their behaviour an “undesirable trading situation”, or “UTS”. Where shall I start …
No one could have predicted when David Seymour’s End of Life Choice Bill was passed by Parliament last November that the referendum required to bring the legislation into force would be held against the backdrop of a deadly global pandemic. Since then, the mounting tally of casualties around the world has thrust death and dying …
Could the quarantine and testing botch-ups have an impact on the election? The Government might have been hoping that the scandal was a one-week wonder, but the stories of quarantine and testing fiascos keep coming and will be felt strongly by the public. Many voters will now have much less confidence in the Government’s handling …
During the State Opening of Parliament after the 2017 election, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern pledged that her administration would be a government of transformation. 31 months later, it is clear that Labour in 2020 will never be transformational. Here are ten dead giveaways that explain why. 1. When the Budget was delivered in May, Finance …
In mid-April, as New Zealand entered its fourth week of alert level 4, the Prime Minister warned us not to make comparisons with other countries over our Covid-19 pandemic response. This extraordinary advice came after Simon Bridges had urged the government to adopt a less-stringent lockdown similar to those in some Australian states. He told …
It was just a month ago that the chief executive of Rotorua Lakes Council, Geoff Williams, described suggestions his executive team should consider taking pay cuts as “immoral”. Williams told the NZ Herald: “I am very fortunate to have around me an extremely committed, dedicated and hardworking executive team who are now working even harder …