Unprecedented protest march over broken promise to build a hospital big enough to cope with growth; Labour-Green-Te Pāti Māori bloc just two points behind Coalition in new poll
Fascinating to read the comments under the Trotter article and see how echo chambers develop (there and here) in the internet age.
I'm in favour of Bernard interviewing Dominick Stephens from Treasury about his speech last week (or having Dominick take part in a panel with others that Bernard moderates) to get more detail on whether the Treasury concerns about the long-term debt track from an aging population always leads to the same predictable answers or not about public services and superannuation. I'm guessing Bernard thinks not, so flash-point examples (like the cost of a major piece of infrastructure like this hospital) could help make the debate less dry for non-economists.
Ganesh Nana with Dominick Stephens might be an interesting debate.
On superannuation, Andrew Coleman has published a long series in which he proposes the introduction of a compulsory contributory superannuation savings scheme to cover only the decade from age 65 till 75 (when many are still working), with a state-funded top-up for those unable to save enough; at age 75 everyone would go on the universal NZ Super.
That’s why I can’t bare to read the NZ Herald comments, just a bunch of self congratulating peeps of a certain generation agreeing with each other while punching down
Finishing the geotechnical survey for 24km of new road by January sounds pretty optimistic. Maybe keeping testing down allows a false notion of the cost to be presented?
Yes it does sound optimistic, but is this just an extension of the already in plan Warkworth to Wellsford upgrade that is already been consented? If so it is only another 5km to te hana.
Chris penks Announcement ? When was the last time a local council was held liable for defective workmanship or design ? Its this tinkering at the edges that creates layers of nonsense, legislation that benefits no one and costs in the long run.
Leaky homes where John Key split the cost of fixing them at 25% central government, 25% local government and 50% homeowner. A book on the subject "Rottenomics" by Peter Dyer estimated that half of all leaky homes have not been repaired because the owner couldn't afford their share. And so, you wonder why so many rental properties are in poor condition.
RNZ sadly let Penk get away with a glib final comment re not changing the building code. I've urged them to do more research and read that book by Peter Dyer. The leaky homes crisis was not caused by changes to the building code. Principal causes were attempts to privatise the consenting process and under-resourcing of inspectors. We need no repeat of that!
In part no doubt to offset complex legal actions that the country couldnt afford. Not much done under the leaky homes soloution is particularly thorough
The Ganesh Nana interview is a must watch. So much of our children’s income is spent on mortgage repayments. Which is just shifting more NZ dollars to Australia. Last figure I saw was 5 billion dollars going to Australian owned banks per annum. Our Government is like other neoliberal governments around the world, they are capital poor because they sold off their best assets. We no longer have a Ministry of Works. Major NZ contractors appear to have calculated that the public purse is a great way to make money. Has anybody worked out how much it costs to build stuff now versus the 1970s? As Chris Trotter pointed out recently NZ is such a small economy the big projects need to built by the government. So if you are young with small children, is the burden of your mortgage and the disproportionate amount of tax paid too much? We need revolutionary new ideas to provide housing, infrastructure and support services befitting a wealthy country. Maybe there are some clues in our past.
It’s also worth pointing out how the former head of the Productivity Commission discusses this topic and what it means that Seymour demanded its closure.
What Nana means when he talks about productivity (as an evidence-based policy-making framework) and what N-ACT mean when they talk about productivity (punitive Protestant-derived morality politics) are totally, *totally* different.
Contrast Nana’s sophisticated suggestions with van Velden’s comically pathetic ideas to cut public holidays and workplace HS.
I feel like I keep having to remind people, (as a token Aussie?) that the ‘Aussie Banks’ are mostly owned by institutional investors, mostly in the US. So that mortgage income is mostly flowing to the States, not that it’s any better. But the myth of Aussie owned banks is pervasive in NZ. Even Luxon used it in his fear tactic response to a capital gains tax.
Should someone (not me because I'm lazy and don't have access to all the data) start recording all the downsized, deferred, cancelled or whatnot spending by the government on infrastructure? Add a percentage (50%?) to account for the cost when these bits of infrastructure are finally built in the future and call this number "The Can" because it surely is being kicked down the road.
Please always refer to the Hospital situated in Dunedin as the hospital for the entire southern region. dubbing it Dunedin's hospital leads those who can't read past the headlines all too easily into the supposition that it serves only Dn. It is also a teaching hospital meaning that the med school is in jeopardy. ODT and DCC came out staunchly in favour in the hospital services for a new neurop=logy dept and therefore should not be portrayed as conservative. We can make noise when the need is there, but like Hipkins don't bark at every passing truck! ( forgive my typos, I'm waiting for a cataract op)
Great point. And to help with context about how far the catchment stretches, Google tells me it is a 3.5 hour drive from Te Anau to Dunedin hospital, 3.75 hours from Queenstown etc.
I see the Bulletin this morning repeatedly referirng to 'Dn's hospital'. Such high profile journos need to get it right and thus gain perspective and therefore credibility. The slant on Dunners people needing to be cajouled into action with free bus rides etc is a bit of northern prejudice. 35,000 people took the time and made the effort, some with obviously serious medical conditions, to speak up for the welfare of the southern community
Most batshit thing in amongst all that: The opposition is so absent in daily conversation that the social-demolition crew remain (on opposition polling!) over 2% more popular!
In spite of all their cancellations & cost cutting, this wretched government is going to set up a new medical school at Waikato Uni. Obviously we need to train more Doctors & even more obviously, it's much cheaper to do this by expanding the 2 existing med. schools rather than build a new one from scratch. The vice chancellor of Waikato Uni is a right wing economist & a National party appointed Director of the Reserve Bank who has been pushing for his Uni to have its own med. school. Another case of mutual back scratching by the Nats.
With Stephen Joyce advising Waikato University on getting this new medical school.
Wonder why the Reti press release about a promising benefit-cost analysis for this new medical school is devoid of any figures. Does 'promising' mean a less negative benefit-cost ratio than that for a Road of National Significance?
Yes, it begins to look like the tobacco policy and the speed limit policy (and the ferries, and the ....): the government will plough ahead no matter the evidence to the contrary.
The Dunedin protests came up this morning between me & a family member. He said he didn't know why people were "comparing the tax cuts to the hospital funding.... they have nothing to do with each other. I (as gently as possible) informed him that governments have to borrow for tax cuts just like they would for infrastructure. I also told him the figures of tax cuts to the hospital build & explained to him that just like Akld hospital also serves the wider north island, Dunedin also serves the wider lower south island, not just the city.
He exclaimed... "well... why would they spend money on tax cuts when they know they have to pay for hospitals"... I let him sit on it.
A concern about the building consent process change proposals, based on my experience with a building consent for a major renovation of our house (not finished yet).
Having building consent processing centralised or regionalised means that the all important local knowledge can be lost. When we got the building consent it was processed by a contractor based several hundred kilometres away (and on the other side of Cook Strait), a person without good knowledge of local site conditions.. When the local building inspector came for the foundation inspection he has local knowledge of the soil conditions of the area and site - we had to (justifiably) get more geotech assessment for expansive clays. Should have been picked up when the consent application was processed but that local knowledge input was missing.
If there had been such No No No's since 1800 or so, what would we have now? This government has a weird death wish it seems. Zero belief in a future - they're scary. And scared?
Best cartoon ever!
Especially Winnie the Hipkins.
It’s difficult looking for a pot of honey when you get confused easily…
A bear of little brain?
Pure genius, I will never be able to look at Hipkins the same again ☺️
At first glance, I thought "Frickin liars" was the quote of the day.
But that one would fit on pretty much any day.
It’s so wonderfully sharp and to the point. More of a kick in the guts than dropping the f bomb could ever be.
A powerful image of the protests in Dunedin
Chris Trotter is worth a read on the implications of Dunedin's 'March of the 35,000'.
https://www.interest.co.nz/public-policy/129972/no-government-can-survive-level-anger-driving-one-quarter-major-city%E2%80%99s
Fascinating to read the comments under the Trotter article and see how echo chambers develop (there and here) in the internet age.
I'm in favour of Bernard interviewing Dominick Stephens from Treasury about his speech last week (or having Dominick take part in a panel with others that Bernard moderates) to get more detail on whether the Treasury concerns about the long-term debt track from an aging population always leads to the same predictable answers or not about public services and superannuation. I'm guessing Bernard thinks not, so flash-point examples (like the cost of a major piece of infrastructure like this hospital) could help make the debate less dry for non-economists.
Ganesh Nana with Dominick Stephens might be an interesting debate.
On superannuation, Andrew Coleman has published a long series in which he proposes the introduction of a compulsory contributory superannuation savings scheme to cover only the decade from age 65 till 75 (when many are still working), with a state-funded top-up for those unable to save enough; at age 75 everyone would go on the universal NZ Super.
https://www.interest.co.nz/public-policy/129892/andrew-coleman-calls-new-zealanders-focus-tax-policy-attention-retirement
That’s why I can’t bare to read the NZ Herald comments, just a bunch of self congratulating peeps of a certain generation agreeing with each other while punching down
Thanks Craig. I’ve got an interview scheduled with Dominick for tomorrow afternoon to publish on Friday.
Finishing the geotechnical survey for 24km of new road by January sounds pretty optimistic. Maybe keeping testing down allows a false notion of the cost to be presented?
Yes it does sound optimistic, but is this just an extension of the already in plan Warkworth to Wellsford upgrade that is already been consented? If so it is only another 5km to te hana.
Chris penks Announcement ? When was the last time a local council was held liable for defective workmanship or design ? Its this tinkering at the edges that creates layers of nonsense, legislation that benefits no one and costs in the long run.
Leaky homes where John Key split the cost of fixing them at 25% central government, 25% local government and 50% homeowner. A book on the subject "Rottenomics" by Peter Dyer estimated that half of all leaky homes have not been repaired because the owner couldn't afford their share. And so, you wonder why so many rental properties are in poor condition.
RNZ sadly let Penk get away with a glib final comment re not changing the building code. I've urged them to do more research and read that book by Peter Dyer. The leaky homes crisis was not caused by changes to the building code. Principal causes were attempts to privatise the consenting process and under-resourcing of inspectors. We need no repeat of that!
In part no doubt to offset complex legal actions that the country couldnt afford. Not much done under the leaky homes soloution is particularly thorough
So glad I didn't buy an apartment during that era. Not only did many leak but a lot have lost value too.
Great idea for an interview. Thanks.
Great video to watch explaining structurall deficit.
https://youtu.be/8FJDd0PsGaM?si=fmi7UXW3PnA31IrG
The Ganesh Nana interview is a must watch. So much of our children’s income is spent on mortgage repayments. Which is just shifting more NZ dollars to Australia. Last figure I saw was 5 billion dollars going to Australian owned banks per annum. Our Government is like other neoliberal governments around the world, they are capital poor because they sold off their best assets. We no longer have a Ministry of Works. Major NZ contractors appear to have calculated that the public purse is a great way to make money. Has anybody worked out how much it costs to build stuff now versus the 1970s? As Chris Trotter pointed out recently NZ is such a small economy the big projects need to built by the government. So if you are young with small children, is the burden of your mortgage and the disproportionate amount of tax paid too much? We need revolutionary new ideas to provide housing, infrastructure and support services befitting a wealthy country. Maybe there are some clues in our past.
Wow Bruce! Love what you’re saying here!!
It’s also worth pointing out how the former head of the Productivity Commission discusses this topic and what it means that Seymour demanded its closure.
What Nana means when he talks about productivity (as an evidence-based policy-making framework) and what N-ACT mean when they talk about productivity (punitive Protestant-derived morality politics) are totally, *totally* different.
Contrast Nana’s sophisticated suggestions with van Velden’s comically pathetic ideas to cut public holidays and workplace HS.
I feel like I keep having to remind people, (as a token Aussie?) that the ‘Aussie Banks’ are mostly owned by institutional investors, mostly in the US. So that mortgage income is mostly flowing to the States, not that it’s any better. But the myth of Aussie owned banks is pervasive in NZ. Even Luxon used it in his fear tactic response to a capital gains tax.
Thanks. Point noted.
Same Old Same Old Stuff “ Talky Talky “but little understanding of fundamentals
Should someone (not me because I'm lazy and don't have access to all the data) start recording all the downsized, deferred, cancelled or whatnot spending by the government on infrastructure? Add a percentage (50%?) to account for the cost when these bits of infrastructure are finally built in the future and call this number "The Can" because it surely is being kicked down the road.
Or in this case, the can't
Zing!
It’s the can’t they continue to stub their toes on! Slow learners.
Remedial. Should send them back to school for the benefit of the new programmes and curriculum...
Please always refer to the Hospital situated in Dunedin as the hospital for the entire southern region. dubbing it Dunedin's hospital leads those who can't read past the headlines all too easily into the supposition that it serves only Dn. It is also a teaching hospital meaning that the med school is in jeopardy. ODT and DCC came out staunchly in favour in the hospital services for a new neurop=logy dept and therefore should not be portrayed as conservative. We can make noise when the need is there, but like Hipkins don't bark at every passing truck! ( forgive my typos, I'm waiting for a cataract op)
Great point. And to help with context about how far the catchment stretches, Google tells me it is a 3.5 hour drive from Te Anau to Dunedin hospital, 3.75 hours from Queenstown etc.
Yes, I was explaining exactly this to a family member.
Great points Marian.
I see the Bulletin this morning repeatedly referirng to 'Dn's hospital'. Such high profile journos need to get it right and thus gain perspective and therefore credibility. The slant on Dunners people needing to be cajouled into action with free bus rides etc is a bit of northern prejudice. 35,000 people took the time and made the effort, some with obviously serious medical conditions, to speak up for the welfare of the southern community
Most batshit thing in amongst all that: The opposition is so absent in daily conversation that the social-demolition crew remain (on opposition polling!) over 2% more popular!
In spite of all their cancellations & cost cutting, this wretched government is going to set up a new medical school at Waikato Uni. Obviously we need to train more Doctors & even more obviously, it's much cheaper to do this by expanding the 2 existing med. schools rather than build a new one from scratch. The vice chancellor of Waikato Uni is a right wing economist & a National party appointed Director of the Reserve Bank who has been pushing for his Uni to have its own med. school. Another case of mutual back scratching by the Nats.
thankyou for that information
With Stephen Joyce advising Waikato University on getting this new medical school.
Wonder why the Reti press release about a promising benefit-cost analysis for this new medical school is devoid of any figures. Does 'promising' mean a less negative benefit-cost ratio than that for a Road of National Significance?
Yes, it begins to look like the tobacco policy and the speed limit policy (and the ferries, and the ....): the government will plough ahead no matter the evidence to the contrary.
https://www.waikatotimes.co.nz/nz-news/350433571/waikato-medical-school-passes-its-first-government-test
The Dunedin protests came up this morning between me & a family member. He said he didn't know why people were "comparing the tax cuts to the hospital funding.... they have nothing to do with each other. I (as gently as possible) informed him that governments have to borrow for tax cuts just like they would for infrastructure. I also told him the figures of tax cuts to the hospital build & explained to him that just like Akld hospital also serves the wider north island, Dunedin also serves the wider lower south island, not just the city.
He exclaimed... "well... why would they spend money on tax cuts when they know they have to pay for hospitals"... I let him sit on it.
south island
Ha! My bad... I meant south Island. Thanks Mate... I'll put it down to Monday-itis
You can click on the ... on the right bottom of your post to edit correction :)
Cheers Mate
A concern about the building consent process change proposals, based on my experience with a building consent for a major renovation of our house (not finished yet).
Having building consent processing centralised or regionalised means that the all important local knowledge can be lost. When we got the building consent it was processed by a contractor based several hundred kilometres away (and on the other side of Cook Strait), a person without good knowledge of local site conditions.. When the local building inspector came for the foundation inspection he has local knowledge of the soil conditions of the area and site - we had to (justifiably) get more geotech assessment for expansive clays. Should have been picked up when the consent application was processed but that local knowledge input was missing.
Very interesting point Andrew.
Super super super nature pic thank you. Makes me happy
If there had been such No No No's since 1800 or so, what would we have now? This government has a weird death wish it seems. Zero belief in a future - they're scary. And scared?