28 Comments

Be in no doubt ford ranger man is in the driving seat and expects a tax cut to boot

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A new piece by Dr Sweeney.

https://www.cityraillink.co.nz/executive-december-2023

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Yep. Linked above to the speech. Cheers.

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Kia ora Bernard

Old audio on this post - unless you are wanting to reinforce yesterday's messaging :)

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yes a bit of a time warp rough on my poor brain

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My apologies.

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All fine. I just so pleased to find out that I can still tell which day it isn't

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Updated now.

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thanks Bernard.

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Very sorry guys. I will replace and resend immediately.

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Updated now.

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Good to have in your commentary, Bernard, the data showing Kainga Ora's increased asset value. Radio news this morning (Morning Report) has repeated only Bishop's scary headline of the lift in the total debt. Just one-sided justification by Bishop. How long can we survive this management???

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A good one to open up Bernard. Worth repeating,even if it's probably paying into the wind for the next few years. Any thoughts on jenny Ruth's piece this morning criticising nzme for not taking ad money for relatively extreme propoganda? But weird I thought.

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NZME happily accepts ad money from the liquor industry - and not just ads for beer and wine. Hard liquor is often advertised.

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I’m curious how you square the circle that any “national conversation” will inevitably end up with the electorate choosing low to no population growth and the short term lower taxes that allows rather than open their wallets and back yards to migration.

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I read the idea of a 4-year term being floated a lot more recently, as some sort of answer to short term-ism. But I just don't see how this works. Whether it's 3 or 4 years, both options are short term from the perspective of climate and infrastructure planning.

What we need is a shift in the bi-partisan consensus, and I don't feel adding an extra year will make politicians want to work together. If anything changing the narrative from "9 long years under National" to "12 long years under National" would make it worse.

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I can't see them lasting three terms.

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Yeah, not this current configuration 😅 although Peters is a fan of making legislative changes to maintain his power ... so there's always that option for him.

You probably got the reference, but I was referring to the Key/English Government which I sometimes hear referred to as "9 long years etc. etc."

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Could there be a parallel with 1997-8? Once Peters hands over the deputy PM role and starts thinking about how to distinguish NZ First from an increasingly unpopular coalition, will the outrigger canoe start to disintegrate?

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Agreed.

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When will the Minister of Justice release the final report on improving our electoral system that was presented to the Minister on 30 November?

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It's amazing how so many people in this country are blind to the consequences of both previous and current government policies (or non-policies) on immigration.

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If I were a teacher I would tell every class I teach to write 100 times every day ‘the government is not a household. We can buy anything which is priced in our own currency because we print the bloody stuff’ To tell us otherwise is a way to promote an ideology and get people frightened. Taxation is the way to reduce wealth differential in a country. In the old days the top rate was 68% plus all the excise taxes on imported things so that people were employed to make things here and not just import things. That was designed to reduce such inequality. And it worked. There was not the crime or the poverty there is today. Yes, things had to be changed but we threw the baby out with the bath water when we embraced neoliberalism and the free market philosophy. And when the Suez and Panama canals are closed and everything has to go around the Cape of Good Hope what do you think is going to happen to prices and inflation? So stop buying people because times are going get a lot lot worse.

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Warning approaching stealth taxes heading this way - rates, consenting fees etc and other charges the government can go “not me gov”

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www.interest.co.nz/property/125723/david-norman-says-third-party-investment-will-need-be-part-solution-new-zealand’s

Part 2 of a series on funding the infrastructure needed. While not saying the private capital is the solution to everything, it does appear to lightly skip over the higher costs and ongoing issues when non-government capital is funding public services

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Dear Bernard

sadly and regrettably The Kaka has been infected with/invaded by a raging, abusive and aggressive extremist who is incapable of having a calm, rational and sensible debate/discussion about residential rental properties. Instead he resorts to false rabid vile invective which is damaging the excellent reputation/standing that The Kaka had for providing informative, rational and sensible information about a range/variety of important topics. he reminds me of Andrew King.

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FYI I have updated this to include the correct audio.

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International students do not come to New Zealand for an education unless they are going to university. Those who come to study at polytechnics are private providers are coming for the pathway to residence. National can't both say that we need to tighten immigration AND sell a future in New Zealand for the price of a qualification.

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