Right now we are commemorating last year's Cyclone, there's a lead story about a mouse at Pak'nSave, the 111 system and how Mr Plod won't be upgrading it in the next three years, plus a bit about the Taxpayers Union Curia Poll and some fluff about Valentines Day alongside Audrey polishing up Luxon over his recent remarks about the war in Gaza.
However here's a list of topics not making headlines :
1. Luxon's excuse to get rid of section 27 reports
2. National's decision to index benefits to inflation
3. Why the Curia Tax Payers poll is the only poll in town
4. Rating agencies and balance Sheet separation
5. The Atlas Network relationship with Act, NZ Initiative and the TPU
6. Luxon's rhetoric - working incredibly hard to get things done
7. Gerry's performance as Speaker
8. Luxon being undermined by Seymour
9. Willis and her lateness over the Budget
10. Smokefree and Government links to Big Tobacco
11. Who profits from Deregulation
12. The real drivers of Domestic Inflation
That's just a sample, and yes I forgot this and I forgot that - the state of the Hauraki Gulf, the cuts to Auckland Transport projects, Climate Change and no progress, EVs are too expense and being taxed too much etc etc.
Here's a few paragraphs on each topic I did choose to name.
1. Luxon's excuse to get rid of section 27 reports.
Yesterday in parliament Debs asked Luxon if he agreed with the New Zealand Law Society, and the New Zealand Bar Association that scrapping funding for section 27 reports will disproportionately impact Māori, undermine rehabilitation, and lead to higher rates of offending, and, if not, why not? Luxon's excuse was "No, I don't. The reality is that Māori are higher victims of crime than anybody in this country, and we're making sure that Māori feel safe in their own businesses, their homes, and their communities."
So while it is true that the Maori Victimisation reports show over one third of Māori adults (38%) were victimised within a 12-month period and this is higher than the New Zealand average of 30% - Section 27 reports provide a comprehensive account of any relevant personal, family, whānau, community and cultural factors, and the relationship between those factors and offending behaviours. The report helps a judge to understand more about a person, their life and background, rather than simply the details of their offence.
“With funding for these reports removed, the only way a person facing sentencing will be able to access them is by paying privately. Those who can afford this would then have a greater level of representation in Court than those receiving Legal Aid. That is a significant breach of fundamental rights”, says Law Society President Frazer Barton.
The Law Society says there may be other means of addressing what appear to be largely financial concerns ( Nicola's tax cuts ) and concerns relating to the perceived impact of these reports on sentencing outcomes.
The Criminal Bar Association says the Sentencing Act 2002 represents a balance between providing for the interests of the victim by holding defendants accountable, and taking into consideration, where appropriate, the defendant's background.
Luxon is removing that balance - and the withdrawal of funding is a false economy. Fewer Cultural Reports will result in a larger prison population serving longer periods of imprisonment. That cost to the Government will far exceed any modest savings that are obtained in defunding Cultural Reports.
2. National's Decision to index Benefits to Inflation
Yesterday in parliament Nat Louise Upston was asked "Why won't she index benefits to wages or inflation, whichever is higher, to ensure everyone is supported in good and bad times? Upston replied "This Government has made the decision to be consistent, to follow what has been done in 31 of the last 35 years, which is to increase it based on the CPI." This National Party promise to decouple benefit increases from wages will see hundreds of thousands of people miss out on payments worth more than $50 a week by the end of the decade, and would likely see National struggling to meet some child poverty targets. The changes will save the Government about $2 billion over the next four years, but will cost beneficiaries dearly. Upston replied to this point with "So the member is talking about projections 10 years out", when it's about six years out. Her performance on Q&A on Sunday was a total shocker but media have let this one slide...
3. Why the Curia Tax Payers poll is the only poll in town.
During January and February 2023 there were five polls a month from - Talbot, Curia TPU, 1 News Verian, Roy Morgan, Horizon etc and in the months before the election new players entered the scene - Guardian Essential and the Post Fresh water polls for example. I have not even mentioned Reid Research, but add it up and there were eight players doing polls - but right now there are only two players polling. One of them is Roy Morgan which generally never makes headlines and uses a slightly different method- and the only really visible poll is Curia Taxpayers Union polling. The polls are at odds with each other over Act - Roy Morgan says at the end of January 2024 Act were on 7.5 while David Farrar and the TPU ( Atlas Network ) say Act are on 13.7 - a week later - so both cannot be correct. There is no wider trend - but much has been made of this one poll by the NZ Herald and other media. There's been no comrpehensive coverage why - but the answer will be - we are three years from an election and medi cannot afford the polls - so the Taxpayers Union get to influence NZ over the Treaty Principles pretty much all by itself.
4. Rating agencies and balance Sheet separation
There's some coverage about this but it's not huge news, that Simeon Brown confirmed the government would not underwrite the council controlled organisations ( CCOs ) , and it was now up to councils to set up the CCOs and achieve the balance sheet separation required to borrow more money. "We're still working through that particular part of the policy." said Brown. This underwriting was one of the key planks required by credit rating agencies to provide access to long term funding and it's all pretty hazy right now. Kieren said about this ..."You can't have direct council control and balance sheet separation, they were going to have to pick one. Now they know that in the future it's going to be councils and mayors that cop it when they increase rates. But actually, when ratepayers look at their bill, and they see an increase, that's because the council had no choice."
5. The Atlas Network relationship with Act, NZ Initiative and the TPU
There's no coverage in any newspapers about this topic as media turn their noses up and Oliver Sean Plunket performs fits of laughter at the silly left wing conspiracy theory. RNZ have touched on this with Mihingarangi - and Plunket has mocked her for doing so - in the same way Seymour scolded her. There appears to be a code of silence here - although Newsroom have done a few articles on Act and the taxpayers Union - you will not find this topic treated with respect and factual analysis at the NZ Herald or NewsTalk ZB. The links are very clear, in broad daylight and New Zealanders are mostly unaware as we have normalised the same model that messed up the UK and the USA.
6. Luxon's rhetoric - working incredibly hard to get things done.
I don't know about you but I am getting sick and tired of hearing Luxon boasting about how incredibly hard he is working to get things done - when all he is doing is tearing things down without a solution to replace it with. National are making excuses about how they are still waiting for advice or setting up a working group - but they emphasise they are doing it really fast when in reality every government has had a 100 day plan and usually it involves some actual reform solutions - not just tearing reform down and taking us back to 2017 at great cost and regardless of impacts.
Media should be ripping into Luxon here, but you know, a mouse and Valentines Day.
7. Gerry's performance as Speaker
Audrey gave Gerry a bouquet for his fine performance as Speaker - in fact on 18 December 2023 Audrey said - "Speaker Gerry Brownlee has had a superb start to his new role", but anyone watching Parliament knows Gerry has had a shocker. Whether it's cos he can't stand up easily or just can't keep pace, Winston is running circles around him ( lol ), and Gerry is flip flopping decisions, making poor calls and taking points of order that are not within standing orders. Gerry's tactic to go away and reflect on matters but always side with what suits National is ticking some people off - and we all recall media tearing strips off Trev - but look at them over Gerry? Butter would not melt. Gerry is an embarrassment - especially when he repeatedly forgets names of Māori MPs in the Greens and TPM. It's been ongoing and is getting worse - but no mention of this ongoing pattern in any media. Righto.
8. Luxon being undermined by Seymour
Jenna Lynch did cover this but then it faded away in the 24 hour news cycle. Yesterday Luxon dodged questions over how he is tolerating Seymour stating he got nervous and will change his mind over Act's Treaty Principles Bill. Luxon has made this opaque with spin about "we have have had many conversations and I am not getting into that conversation". Luxon changed his position on the Treaty principles Bill after Waitangi Day as his rhetoric added definite language - and everyone paying attention noticed while Luxon tried to blur this.
The deceit is offensive but so is the evasion and we have to ask why did NZ vote for this and why is this person our preferred PM? Media should keep their foot on Luxon's rubber neck here.
9. Willis and her lateness over the Budget
Audrey gave a brickbat to Nicola Willis for delaying the Budget Policy Statement (and announcements of new spending allowances) to March 27. The previous two BP statements following a change of Government (2009 and 2018) were released in December. This is a pattern now. Willis was late - three days late with her Fiscal Plan on 1 October - because overseas voting began on 27 September. Willis failed to show where the money would come from - and she and Luxon hid the spreadsheet concerning her foreign buyers tax. Willis' MiniBudget included "no information" on the costs of the coalition agreements Willis' Government has agreed to. "There are some large commitments in the agreements including funding for prisons, increased funding for IRD, police, St Johns, aged care and more," said Grant. This is all at odds with "working incredibly hard" and more like "last minute scramble" to minimise the heat.
10. Smokefree and Government links to Big Tobacco
Wow Casey Costello is suddenly not in the news - but as Chair of the Tax Payers Union she has links to British American Tobacco and - let's be clear - Casey attended an Atlas Network interview with John Storey at the Institute of Public Affairs ( Atlas Network ) 10 months ago to try and silence the Voice. As we all know Casey cannot tell us who wrote the NZ First note to the Ministry of Health - that instructed it to freeze the tax on cigarettes for three years from 31 December 2023 onwards. We also know Luxon has been defending her and Luxon and Bishop parroted Tobacco Industry messages about a black market and one store in Northland - if we do what Smokefree want and not what Big Tobacco want. The links to Big Tobacco are many and all over this area - but media are asleep? Where's the investigative journalists? I hope they are working on exposing it.
11. Who profits from Deregulation
As you know Chris Bishop is ripping environmental protections out of the RMA as fast as he can...and David Seymour is Minister of Deregulation ( Atlas ). We've all heard about rich deposits under ground and Shane Jones declared on 16 December he is the Minister of Resources and he's ripping into gas and oil exploration and he boasted that Mining is Coming Back as well. So who stands to win and profit and why is that not headline news? Is Gerry trying to hide identities of these shady lobbyists?
Point made - there is a hole here in media focus.
12. The real drivers of Domestic Inflation
Two weeks ago Paul Conway - Chief Economist at the RBNZ told us that key factors behind non-tradable inflation included high net migration of 130,000 in 2023 - which had the demand side effect of increasing household rents and pressure on Local Government rates. Only 510 people watched his presentation on Youtube. Non trade-able inflation remained sticky at 5.9% because of these main drivers - but as you know Luxon has been conflating these demand side effects with Government Spending - yes same old fake news rhetoric. On 28 February 2024 - Adrian Orr will release the February Monetary Policy Statement and Official Cash Rate (OCR). It will receive once over lightly treatment in our media - and Luxon will continue with his misleading politic rhetoric unchallenged by media - who likely do not understand how he is fibbing to them.
Things not making headlines
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