Big News

2007-11-07T14:16:00.003+13:00

blog has MOVED

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I think it is good news that the Treaty of Waitangi and tikanga is included in the school curriculum. However I am concerned that there is only one "professional development" day allocated to get up to speed with the curriculum.

I can just imagine what untrained teachers will be telling their kids about the Treaty, let alone about climate change. They`ll probably equate indigenous rights with Treaty rights. They`ll probably say that the four Maori seats initiated by the 1867 Representation Act were initiated because of the Treaty. They`ll probably say that the number of Maori seats have increased due to the Maori Electoral option under MMP, and that option was to provide greater representation to honour the Treaty of Waitangi. And like most MSM journalists, they`ll probably tell their students that Te Reo is one of three official languages in New Zealand.

In order for children to learn about the Treaty, teachers need to know about it before being able to correctly teach it. Most teachers probably don`t even realise that the Treaty is currently part of our Constitution. But let's hope they can spell the word "curriculum" better than this minister of Youth Affairs.Go over HERE
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2007-11-04T18:43:00.000+13:00

Tax cuts

Helen Clark has announced that Labour will be offering tax cuts. Coincidentally, it so happens that it can now afford to- right on the weekend of the Labour Party conference and within a year of an election with Labour sliding in the polls. The announcement did not say when the tax cuts will be reversed, who will get a tax cut, when, and how much.

The announcement came after Michael Cullen recently told the Finance and Expenditure Select Committee that people who think there should be tax cuts on the back of the big surpluses should be taken out and quietly drowned.

The difference between Labour and National on tax is that you can rely on National to have a bettter tax policy and to deliver it.

2007-11-03T09:54:00.001+13:00

Its a bitter way with Labour - way bitter.

Chris Knox has written a song that will be used in Labour's campaign. It's pretty good, but like many of Labours policies it starts well and goes downhill. The song is a bit repetitive towards the end. You can hear it here. Its called " Its a better way with Labour, but sounds like "its a bitter way with Labour".

Chris Knox is better known for his top 10 song "Not Given Lightly". The first line may be more appropriate for Labour. However I suspect Labour wouldn`t like it:"Hello my friends, its morning, time to wake now". Perhaps that will be the theme song for Labour's next conference.

Finally, here's Mike Williams criticising National at conference. And, strangely enough, he doesn`t have much to say!He says National wants to give tax cuts to people who do not need them, a bit like Labour has given WFF paynents to parents who dont need them.

2007-11-01T15:57:00.000+13:00

Parliament to have an open day

Parliament is having an open day this Sunday. Openly gay MPs will be doing a guided tour and the Labour front bench will be coordinating the church service at 10am. Mallard will be offering his uppercut services to any Maori MPs who will take him on. Show starts at 11am just after church. Ron Mark will be demonstrating how high he can lift his middle finger and Nandor will be doing a skateboarding demonstration.

Unfortunately Helen Clark and Judith Tizard won't be there. It's an open day, y'see.

Should be good.

2007-10-31T22:01:00.001+13:00

Prominent blogger suggests banning marriage

Russell Brown is a nice guy. Quite likeable in fact. But his comment that marriage should be banned because singer Amy Winehouse - of "Rehab" fame - was "tipped" into hard drugs because she got married is not only erronous, its is stupid. Firstly, Winehouse did not get into drugs because she was married. Secondly her dad did not say that her marriage tipped her into drugs, as Russell has claimed.

What the article did say was that Winehouse hard drug use coincided with, not was caused by, her marriage of six months. What it also said was that Winehouse has put on a stone in weight since her marriage. So that weight gain has coincided with her marriage.

Gee, perhaps we should ban marriage. Why not ban de facto relationships as well. I know someone else who has put on a bit of weight since his. People are gaining weight due to entering into relationships. They should start doing drugs to lose weight or be single, forthwith. Especially Amy Winehouse. No relationships; no,no,no.

2007-10-31T16:05:00.000+13:00

Helens halloween special

The reshuffle. More of a trick through crooked teeth than a treat.

We have a minister of Women`s Affairs called Steve,and a Claytons minister. Cosgrove takes over Sport and the Rugby World Cup. Cunliffe is on Health - and only just in the front bench - after smacking his kids in a carpark, and Carter has Education because he has a masters degree and a teaching qualification. The ministers of Social Development, Education and Health have more Ministerial portfolos and are lower ranked than the Minister of Maori Affairs. The Associate Ministers of Education and Social Development are ranked higher than the actual minister.

Hodgson is still on the front bench and is the Tertiary Education and Economic Development Minster so he can stuff up his portfolios in silence. A large Government ministry is not even on the front bench - Dyson has Social Development.

So the portfolio responsibilities and the seniority are all out of whack - especially Horomia - he's one of FOUR associate ministers of Social Development and everyone seems to have forgotten about him today. What's he doing so high up the rankings? Is it because he is a Maori? Given that the woman with crooked teeth has done her Halloween reshuffle, how come nobody is asking why “Horrormia” is so high up the rankings. David Farrar suggested yesterday that he will retain his ranking because he is a Maori. True? How Horoble. Bad trick.

Goff didnt get Health - so he`ll get Finance when Cullen goes. Annette King gets Police, Justice and the Law Commission - to set up her campaign to get the Electoral Finance Bill passed.

Obviously there is not much depth in Labour. Trevor Mallard is the Minister of Labour as a reward for punching Tau Henare in the jaw at work. Wonder what his policy is on violence in the workplace. Heh.

I should have had a coffee after all...
The Lineup is here

2007-10-31T10:10:00.000+13:00

Labour's possible top 10 this afternoon

This is what I have come up so far - but I havent had a coffee yet so if Im wrong.... But Horomia could stay on the front bench because he is a Maori. But Jones would do a better job of Maori Affairs. Hodgson should drop. He deserves to.But he may not drop that low...
Clark - PM SIS
Cullen -Finance
Goff - Health
King - Justice
Cunliffe -Education
Parker- Social Development
Cosgrove -Corrections, Police
Jones - Maori Affairs
Dyson -CYFS
Hodgson - Climate Change

2007-10-30T12:25:00.000+13:00

woman smacks a kid so hard he's dead

A woman beat up a kid and is arrested. The police have notified the parents of the arrest and they have asked for privacy at this time

Yeah, if I wasn`t looking for after my kid, and someone esle killed him, I`d be asking for privacy as well. What kind of person calls their kid Jyniah anyway.

Another murder when the "whanau" was looking after her, as opposed to the parents, both of whom were beneficiaries. The arrested person is not the mother, it is a caregiver who was turned in with the assistance of Family Party leader Richard Lewis.

Some caregiver. Maybe she goes to Destiny Church? Hopefully not for too long.

Several other children, all relatives of Jyniah aged between two months and eight years are being cared for, though police were not sure who the current carers were.

Well, we know who the carer isn't.

UPDATE Apparently the caregivers family goes to Destiny Church

2007-10-28T21:11:00.000+13:00

Another politician smacked in the gob

Ruth Dyson says she is gobsmacked at Rodney Hides hypocrisy. She says Rodney Hide is a hypocrite because he voted against the smacking bill and called Labour hypocritical for voting for it and then putting up with Mallard's assault on Tau Henare.

2007-10-28T20:53:00.000+13:00

Family traumatised by police and CYFS after mum lightly smacked her son on the hand

A Wellington mother says her family has been left traumatised by new anti-smacking laws, after her son's school reported her to Child, Youth and Family for smacking him on the hand. So she reported it to the Family First lobby who told the media What this story indicates is that anyone who gets reported to CYFS or police for light smacks on the hand will not only recieve unwanted CYFS or police attention, they`ll also get media attention as well.

This is what the woman told Family First. You read it here, first.

Dear Sir,

I would like to inform families of the potential repercussions of Sue Bradford's bill. I wish to do this by sharing with you our own family's traumatic experience, since this bill has been approved.

During recent school holidays, I arrived home around 5.30pm after a fun filled day with my children to notice a card left by Child Youth and Family, asking me to get in contact with them ASAP. There was no detail as to the reason. We received no official letter from CYF. After leaving six messages, over a period of four days, I was finally able to contact the Care and Protection officer.

The Care and Protection officer informed me that they had received a complaint from the school, and that under new policy they were obligated to follow it up. My child (hereinafter also referred to as X) had shown aggressive behavior towards another student. When questioned by the teacher as to why, X answered that they had been smacked that morning. The Care and Protection officer also explained that under new policy, teachers were required to report all smacking incidences directly to Child Youth and Family Services and that this was now just standard procedure.

The Care and Protection officer went on to ask me questions relating to X’s behaviour, and whether they needed help in any way, eg medication, special needs etc. I replied, not that I was aware of - just a normal every day child having a bad day.

She also enquired about my family and when she was satisfied, she assured me that she would not take this any further and could I please ask the school to contact me directly if this sort of thing happened again.

Later when my husband and I questioned our child, X explained that they had thrown a ball and that it bounced and accidentally hit a class mate. X had woken up in a bad mood that particular day and was very reluctant and unhelpful at getting ready for school. I told X to hurry up – X was refusing and throwing a wobbly, so I ended up smacking X on the hand. I also gave X a bit of a push into the room to get my child moving (done in the heat of the moment). X responded by more yelling and giving me an evil look. It wasn't a good morning. (This sort of thing doesn't happen very often, but it does happen.)

I usually never let my children go to school angry with me, but that morning we were in a hurry.The teacher seemed to ask questions about X’s behaviour and why X was behaving like this. The teacher seemed to ask leading questions like, how was it at home etc. X never told her what the issue was - only that they had been smacked that morning. Apparently the teacher said to X, I will see to that and then asked if there were any marks. X said no.

X is worried that they will be taken away, and it is really hard to get X to talk about it. X can also be a bit of a drama queen, and could have exaggerated to the teacher at the time (especially in X’s frame of mind.) My husband did contact the school, to inquire why we weren't called earlier by the school and that this was just not good enough. He also communicated what the Care and Protection officer had said to us. The school responded that it was new procedure and were sympathetic, but offered us no apology.

This is the first incident of this kind we have had with the school. In the second incident (over 2 months later), I invited another family around for lunch one weekend. After lunch the fathers decided to take the children for a walk to the dairy and park. After they were gone about five minutes, two of my children came back and explained to me that they were goofing around, and that Dad had sent them home.

They continued to goof around outside on the trampoline. X got hurt in the rough and tumble, came inside in a huff. When asked what the matter was by our guest, X rudely replied, I don't want to talk to you. I kindly asked X to apologise and X walked outside. I followed and asked X to come back inside and apologise. X walked to the furthest side of the tramp, so that I could not reach X and refused to come back inside. My older child who was already on the tramp tried to wrestle X to the other side. There was a lot of yelling, laughing and screaming going on by everyone, as it had turned into a bit of a game. I tried to take control of X and pull the child off the tramp, while the child was shouting and resisting. I smacked X on the backside with the palm of my hand (X was lying on their stomach), pulled X towards me and asked X to control themselves. Finally X came inside and went to the bedroom. I told X to stay there until they apologised.

Within 20mins, there were three police officers at my door and they asked me to step outside. (had arrived with lights flashing). They had received a complaint from a neighbour about an incident concerning one of my children. They then asked to question X and at the same time questioned me separately about what had happened.

It dawned on me as I was relaying the events that I might be arrested, and asked the officer if that was indeed the case. She said possibly, but needed to speak with the other officer before she could tell me.

After questioning X, and getting the details of my guest, to my relief, they decided not to arrest me this time. The officer kindly informed me that since this bill that Sue Bradford had pushed through, that the police have to respond to all complaints concerning families with children. This was new policy and they have to cross their T’s and dot their I’s.

I wanted to get a good understanding of what she was saying, so I asked the officer, if this was the second visit here and the events were the same, except this time I didn't smack the backside but simply pulled the child off the tramp, would I still be arrested? She replied yes, because I still used physical force and that under the new law no parent is allowed to use any physical force, unless you are protecting your child. The police officers were very kind, but warned me of a possible arrest if this sort of thing happened again. And they left.

These events have traumatised my children, not to mention my husband and myself.

I understand the Police and Child Youth and Family Services were doing their jobs, and I commend them for it. But come on...this is going a bit far don't you think? My children have always had a healthy respect for the police, now sadly that has been altered. I am concerned for the welfare of this country if this sort of thing keeps happening to our families. Our children need security in our system, and shouldn't be fearful of being pulled away from their families.

We have since received a letter from a Foster Care agency contracted to CYF. They had been made aware of the police visiting us and have offered us their services. Their letter informed us that a social worker would call us in the near future. This was very nice of them, only I feel we would only be wasting their time. I am grateful it was this organisation, rather than CYF.

I really am grieved about where our country is heading. We as a family have been made only too aware, that if we tick anyone off for whatever reason, whether a neighbor, a shop keeper or teacher and they call the police, it is their word against ours. Now that we are in the system, it doesn't matter whether we are guilty or not. If the police officer doesn't like us for any reason, they have the power to separate our family. This is a horrible reality!

Again I would like to stress that we are an average NZ family. We have four children – sons and daughters, both teens and younger. We are all law abiding citizens, we don't drink, smoke or do drugs. We have always encouraged our children to respect authority and after this experience, have all been very traumatized.

An assault charge is no small matter. I have been involved in children's work for the last ten years, not to mention all the community work I have done with under privileged children over the years. (the real victims of child abuse.)

If I were to receive an "assault on a child" charge, I couldn't do these things, and I haven't even mentioned paid employment. This is an awful thought.

This new law seems to me, only to be creating insecurity for families that are genuinely trying their best to raise healthy, secure children, that are good law abiding citizens, and a lot of extra work for the organisations that are already over worked and under staffed.

We as parents need to be encouraged and supported by the government, not undermined and stripped of all authority.

Yours sincerely

2007-10-26T13:37:00.001+13:00

Parliament's prayer

For those who dont read Whaleoil

“Almighty God, humbly acknowledging our need for Thy guidance in all things, and laying aside all private and personal interests, we beseech Thee to grant that we may conduct the affairs of this House and of our country to the glory of Thy holy name, the maintenance of true religion and justice, the honour of the Queen, and the public welfare, peace, and tranquillity of New Zealand, except for you Steve, Ron and Winston, and especially you Trevor - just do what the the bloody hell you want, as long as you don’t embarrass Helen, and even then you may be okay if she hasn’t much wriggle room - through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.”

2007-10-25T17:40:00.001+13:00

Mallard to be reshuffled

Duck shooting season starts next week.

UPDATE Trevor Mallard is taking time out. But not with Sharon. Next week is recess anyway, but it is interesting as to where he is taking time out: Taupo. Taupo, of course is a lovely place to take time out in, for various reasons - a lake, good cafes... but it is an especially lovely place for Mallard as his partner, rower Brenda Lawson lives there.

Then from undressing for Brenda, it will be time to be stripped by Helen Clark - of some of his portfolios when he returns to Parliament. Meanwhile Cullen is raping our wallets and a raft of mid range MPs are prostituting themselves for Ministerial positions. It's all a bit immoral really, but it is what is expected from Labour.

After recess the MPs can ask "how's Brenda", instead of "how's Sharon". And Phil Goff can just sit quietly and wait for eventual promotion.

2007-10-25T07:34:00.001+13:00

from recrecreation to sport...

Mallard is really living up to his portfolio as Minister of Sport and Recreation. First he recreates with Sharon, then has a boxing match with Tau Henare in Parliament. What next?

2007-10-23T08:09:00.000+13:00

See, I was right

The Herald has apologised over this. This confirms that the source of the Herald's story was more likely to be the site I linked to yesterday, not any goss within parliament.

If that is the case, why wasn't this published in August/September when many of us knew about it? The answer is because it was as unverified as when the HoS published it. That is why I havenever blogged about it until this weekend.

This site is Big News, not Big Rumours.
Hat Tip Catcus Kate

2007-10-22T21:18:00.001+13:00

Green MP wants 35 hour working week

Sue Bradford wants a 35 hour working week. Lets see, if a one income family with two kids was working 40 hour week on $15 per hour, they`d get a $75.00 a week pay cut - $3,900 per year. They would not get any increase in working for Families payments due to a drop in income either. If that same family worked the same hours at $20 an hour, they'd get just $1,196 extra for a $5,200 drop in income due to the shorter working week.

So how do you think they`d survive? Work longer hours, of course. In a second lower paid job, more likely.

2007-10-22T20:46:00.001+13:00

speaking of affairs, how's Sharon?

Well, the Herald on Sunday has printed this ( HT Whaleoil) so I may as well blog about it. I used to know Sharon pretty well, as well as her mum. I worked with them both prior to Sharon being in the Silver Ferns. I thought she had better taste. And Burridge is her maiden name This is her married name.

Actually what if the Herald is wrong. I think it is wrong.She has got better taste and deserves an apology from the Herald on Sunday. Perhaps this, not parliament grapevines, is the HoS source which has been online for nearly two months.

Time to try another Sport, or get her name right.

2007-10-20T21:27:00.000+13:00

Radiohead's latest album

I`ve been listening to Radioheads latest album In Rainbow. You can't buy it in the shops until 2008. You have to download it, or have a discbox sent to you once ordered - but it's worth it.

In Rainbow. In my computer. OK.

2007-10-19T14:16:00.000+13:00

Smarmy's off to Palmy

Steve Maharey is quitting Cabinet because he has finally accepted a job that pays more than an opposition MP - the Massey University Vice Chancellor. However, before the election he will be doing a Shane Jones and double dipping as he will move to the back-bench rather than force a by-election which Labour may end up losing.
UPDATE It appears that Maharey wil lbe leaving Parliament before taking up his role. He will take up his role six months before the election - meaning Palmerston North will have no MP for six months unless National force a by-election ( which it can do) and local Massey students won't be able to lobby their MP against fee rises because he will be their vice chancellor.

That is because a by-election can't be held six months out from an election wiothout 75 per cent support from parliament.

2007-10-17T08:09:00.000+13:00

NZ - jailer to the world

NZ First MP Ron Mark is disappointed that more than 550 people in our prisons are immigrants. He should be more concerned that half are Maori, and the one in seven Maori that are not in prison are living in Australia.

2007-10-16T17:48:00.001+13:00

well done, Gordon Copeland

There. I`ve said what no other blogger has said before. Well done, Gordon Copeland. He has finally announced that he has walked away from the new non-existant Christian party. Now he can get on with his Future NZ party without the meddling hands of the Destiny rabblerousers. Maybe the new party`s national council will disband as well.

UPDATEActually the new Christian party has been announced as the Family Party which is essentially Destiny Party in drag. Richard Lewis is the leader, former United Future MP Paul Adams is deputy, and Taito Philip Field is not part of it. The Party has the same strategy as Christian Heritage - targeting one electorate and seeing if enough people vote for a candidate because it knows it won`t make the 5 percent threshold.

I wonder what their definition of "family" is. Also will they use THAT Sister Sledge song as the Party theme song. Will they launch the party at a reopened Family club?

2007-10-16T12:33:00.000+13:00

Turn off the TV. Forget Facebook. Just give your kids some time

I don't watch TV (much). I do, however, have a Facebook site. For those who have kids, this article in the Observer is worth reading, and mentions two reports out last week.

The first says that our children are reaching primary school barely able to write their own names or string a coherent sentence together. The second, a study conducted by Professor Robin Alexander at the head of a group of Cambridge researchers, reveals that primary schools have been engulfed by 'a wave of antisocial behaviour, materialism and the cult of celebrity'

There is evidence to suggest that this generation of parents who were brought up on videos and instant visual gratification are not going through cooing routines. There are fewer nursery rhymes, less song, storytelling and reading. All this is taken over by TV, which leaves parents free to think about themselves and to work late.

I`ve probably spent more time with my kids this year than any other. Thats because I work and study from home. We have lots of books in the house, and yes, I do study late but the kids are in bed anyway.....

hat tip Kester who is a parent, blogger, and facebook friend. He may even watch TV sometimes....

2007-10-14T22:07:00.000+13:00

Clark arrested for burglary of John Key's house

Details here. National Party spokesman Kevin Taylor said Key would not comment on the arrest as the matter was before the courts.

2007-10-13T16:19:00.001+13:00

I feel sorry for Kahui

I feel sorry for all the victims of Roger Kahui's offending. But I also feel sorry for Kahui after he was sentenced to preventative detention for rape. He is related to Chris Kahui who is facing charges over his twins. LIke Chris Kahui he has probably never had a real job in his life.

I feel sorry for him because he was born.

The minute he was conceived he was in trouble. He was taken off his parents when he was 7 after suffering physical and emotional abuse, he lived on the streets at the age of 9. He joined a gang in his teens and was in jail at age 21. The only reason that he has just 130 convictions is that he's spent half his life behind bars - and he`s only in his 30s. In fact he has been sentenced to more than 100 years in jail, but the sentences have been served concurrently.

A Kahui family member said "yes, you piece of shit" when the preventive detention sentence was read out in court. Perhaps the same could be said of his parents.

2007-10-11T18:54:00.000+13:00

A Politically Incorrect Story

In these dark days of rugby despair, does anyone remember 1997?

In 1997 the All Black captain was Sean Fitzpatrick, the team was pretty much the same for every match, and it had names like Christian, Zinzan, Josh and Jonah in it.

In 1997 the All Blacks were undefeated. That's right, undefeated. They played the Aussies, the Springboks, the English, the Welsh, the Irish and a few more and never lost a match.

Then something changed in New Zealand.

On the 6th of December 1997 Jenny Shipley ousted Jim Bolger and became our first woman Prime Minister.

The next day the All Blacks managed a lucky draw with England.

The next year the previously undefeated All Blacks lost every Tri Nations match. That's right, every match.

New Zealand has had a woman Prime Minister ever since.

And ever since, when it counted, the rugby has been pretty much downhill as well.

Now some people might think there was some connection between the feminisation of our society and the decline in our rugby.

I couldn' t possibly comment on that.

All I know for sure is Fitzy never cried.

He never had to.

2007-10-10T21:01:00.000+13:00

rugby fallout from bad to worse

Paddy O`Brien is a Kiwi referee and is the referees manager for the Rugby World Cup. So I assume he knows the rules of the game. Of NZ/France ref Wayne Barnes, he says, "He has our complete backing. We will not defend wrong decisions and Wayne did miss a forward pass, as did his two touch judges. But his missed forward pass did not cost the All Blacks that game."

You may recall yesterday I noted that IRB instructs the linesman - otherwise known as touch judges - that they are not allowed to intervene when they spot a forward pass.

Some sports journalist should ask O`Brien how on earth touch judges can "miss" a forward pass when they are not allowed to intervene when do spot one, even if the ref doesnt spot it.

2007-10-10T15:57:00.001+13:00

No, the Human Rights Commission were not censored

Yesterday in Parliament National MP Chris FInlayson asked why the Human Rights Commission did not appear before the select committee hearing the Electoral Finance Bill. David Farrar noticed this and asked on his blog Was the Human Rights Commission censored? with the implication that it was.

The HRC submission notes that they did not request to appear before the committee. So no, they were not censured. However an approach was made to appear before the committee but the people who would have appeared before the committee were out of the country at the time the committee was sitting and could not therefore appear. The HRC told me today that it would like to provide an oral submission but they will wait for
the committee to get hold of them rather than being proactive.

Select committee decisions as to who is to appear are not for public knowledge until the decisions are made. Submitters can ask to appear before the committee at a later date, even if they have not stated they wanted to on their written submission - and the committee can agree to this. Alternatively the select comittee can approach submitters and ask them to appear. It often happens.

It appears the HRC want to appear but the committee is yet to decide whether they wantto hear them. Suffice to say that a government body stating clearly what the government doesn't want them to hear is not exactly going to be proactive. And a committee that doesnt agree with what that government body wants to tell them won't exactly bend over backwards to hear their views.

Chris Finlayson asks a question in Parliament todays as to how many people were asked to give an oral submission on September 17
I gave mine on that day. So did a few other people I know.

2007-10-10T11:33:00.000+13:00

Single Core Benefit not going to happen anytime soon

Despite pulling all the Work and Income Case Managers throughout the country from their jobs to do several days training on the single core benefit, a benefit that will merge all the main benefits into one, the Government has not made any decisions on whether they are even going to have one, despite saying in 2005 it would save $70m a year.

What's worse, is that Minister Steve Maharey has already spend $100m on something that Cabinet has made no implementation decision on.

What a waste.

2007-10-10T06:24:00.000+13:00

World champion team?

The Silver Ferns are playing for the world championship next month and are feeling the pressure after the All Black loss and other losses such as the Americas Cup.

Lets see if Helen Clark adds to the pressure by deciding to turn up. She has turned up to our final round of other sporting tournaments - all of which we lost. Maybe John Key should attend instead.

2007-10-09T09:33:00.000+13:00

Agreement the ref cost the AB's

UPDATED
There is a long-standing tradition that you don't criticise referees. Yet there seems to be agreement among referees, the IRB and commentators that referee Wayne Barnes cost the All Blacks the chance of progressing into the semi-finals of the Rugby World Cup - and possibly Graham Henry his coaching career with the ABs. I disagree and would point the finger at the IRB more so for appointing him to the game in the first place.

Barnes said just prior to the NZ/France game, “My aim for every game is to come off the pitch and have everyone not to mention me!"

Thats got to be the quote of the tournament.

Barnes, who refereed the match between the World Cup favourites and the Five Nations Champions, refereed his first test this year. Prior to the game, I don't think has ever refereed a test involving top ranked teams, one a southern hemisphere team. There was talk as to whether he was up to the job. IRB bosses now don't think Barnes is up to the job as they have annnounced that he will take no more part in the World Cup after being a favourite to referee the final..

When sport is about politics and money just as much - if not more so - than winning games, we should be using technology to overturn major indescretions that lead to points being scored that would not have been scored had the indescretion been noticed. We have the technology. We didn`t use it. The IRB is just as much to blame as the referee. This World Cup will be remembered for two things: the winner and Wayne Barnes. His career could well be over and that is not the way it should be.

The IRB has to take a serious look at itself as to how it runs future Rugby World Cups. For example, there's something wrong when the IRB instructs the linesman that they are not allowed to intervene when they spot someone offside, a forward pass or crooked lineout.

Also, in light of Barnes' inexperence, imagine if they picked nominees for the Rugby Board Player of the Year award - nominating Ritchie McCaw - with a bunch of guys with a handful of test caps.

update If you thought that Barnes pre match comment was bad, read this

2007-10-07T11:26:00.001+13:00

Money is the winner on the day

I suppose we should look on the bright side, at least we won all our other games, France didn't - and we do hold the Parliamentary World Cup.

11 questions on the Rugby World Cup

Why is there a lack of southern hemisphere referees in the business end of the tournament?

Why did the NZ v Scotland game cost $400 a seat - and were more expensive than most quarterfinal seats?

Are France and England 'bogey" teams for NZ and Australia respectively?

Why did they decide on jersey colours less then a week before big games after the IRB approved the initial jerseys?

Is it fair to blame the ref when it wasn't him that scored fewer points?(Actually, he did score fewer points...).

Is this week a good time for Helen Clark to to call an early election?

Why are game reviews on the website of the Internatonal Rugby Board the only ones not to mention vital referee indiscretions?

Why is just about every media release from the Rugby World Cup Limited over the past two months about money and not rugby?

Why get rid of a good coach as a result of what many people see as a referee indescretion? Particularly when the Rubgy Union say he did everything right.

Why was the huge rugby ball at in Paris officially opened to the public by Helen Clark just before we crashed out of the cup?

And why did Miss Clark attend the game at all, given that most important sporting games of all codes that Clark attends we end up losing? Like Graeme Henry, her contract expires next year too. Imagine if she had have attended the Parliamentary World Cup!

2007-10-05T16:31:00.001+13:00

Taito Philip Field to face corruption charges

And about time, too. The judgement is here

2007-10-05T08:22:00.000+13:00

cronyism at its worst

DPF alerts everyone to the fact that Val Sim has been appointed to the Law Commission by Mark Burton. You`ve never heard of her but you know what she has done.

She made the decision that Burton's Electoral Finance Bill does not breach the Bill of Rights. Nearly every other lawyer disagreed.

This is pretty disgraceful. Helen Clark wants to refer the bill to the Law Commission to fix it up. Geoffrey Palmer, who is on the Commission, didn't want to be an advisor to the Government on the bill - so what the Government has done is made sure there is someone on the Commission that will tell the Government what it wants to hear so they can trumpet that “advice" in Parliament.

Who better than the person who provided the Crown Law opinion in the first place.

What does ths mean for the Bill of Rights?

Well, Crown Law “acknowledges that the issues are finely balanced”, but concludes that “the regulation of the electoral system ultimately depends upon political judgments and is an area in which a wide margin of appreciation is afforded to Parliament.” In other words the Bill of Rights Act is to be interpreted how Labour wants it to be interpreted and Parliament should back any such interpretation up.

So will the Law Commission now formally agree to this opinion?

2007-10-03T15:58:00.000+13:00

ASA decision: Hell Pizza is socially reponsible

In July a number of people complained to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) because of a magazine delivered with ordered Hell pizzas. The Hell-o magazine containing adult content was also at Hell stores and a lot of people complained because of a campaign by lobby group Family First, some on dubious grounds such as the magazine was delivered in letterboxes (it wasnt, and neither did Family First say so). But, apparently, nobody complained that the content of the magazine used sexual appeal to draw attention to an unrelated product, which is a breach of advertising standards, so the ASA didn`t comment on that either.

The complaints were not upheld. The magazine was deemed not to have breached the code of advertising to children - in fact the code was deemed not to have applied as the magazine was not advertised to children even though children may see the magazine. Fair enough. It was deemed not to have breached the code of ethics as it was not deemed under Rule 5 of the code to have caused "serious or widespread offence taking into account the content, medium and product". Now if the magazine was delivered to letterboxes Rule 5 would have been breached.

It was also deemed, under Basic Principle 4 of the code to have been prepared with a 'due sense of social responsibility to consumers and society'. Although kids can view the magazine if left on the coffee table or while collecting pizzas at the door for parents, the ASA considered the delivery of a glossy mag such as Hell-o was socially responsible because their parents had a choce to engage with the advertising and promotion by buying the pizzas. In other words, the ASA thinks that if you want to order pizza and if you dont like the advertising that comes with it, don't buy the pizza and tell Hell to go to hell. If the recipient refused to pay due to associated promotion, all hell would break loose, so to speak and it would be Hell Pizza who would be doing the complaining.

I assume, then that if anyone delivered magazines containing anything with R-rated material - such as sex aids, videos, or gay escort services or material - with ordered unrelated product such as Amway goods, tupperware or pizzas, the ASA would think it is permissible under the code because recipients had a choice whether their kids would be exposed to it by ordering it in the first place, and such material would not cause serious or widespread offence purely because the material is being restricted to customers.

2007-10-03T09:59:00.000+13:00

it's my taonga and I`ll cry if I want to

One woman wants her Tongan husband recognised as a taonga under the treaty because he hasn't got a work permit or residency and is about to be deported. They got married just before his work permit ran out in November last year.

So she has made a claim under the Waitangi Tribunal in an attempt to sort our his immigration problems. The application is on the basis that spouses within the "sanctity of marriage" are taonga, and therefore Maori are guaranteed "the right to retain their taonga" under article two of the treaty which protects assets.

As far as I'm concened she can damn well retain her taonga in Tonga.

So husbands are assets now? Lets hope the Waitangi Tribunal doesnt think so. The guys shouldn't even be in the country. He was granted a limited-purposes visa nine months after his work permit ran out - provided he left the country after surgery for a rugby injury had been done. He should go - and his wife of less than a year should go with him and not clutter up the medical system or the Waitangi Tribunal with her personal problems.

2007-10-02T21:00:00.000+13:00

Madeleine Setchell has a new job

Madeleine Setchell wasn`t allowed to work at the Ministry for the Environment because the Minister didn't like the fact that she went home to her partner, National staffer Kevin Taylor, every night. So it's good that she has recently started a job here as a communications manager. I assume Michael Cullen, the Minister of the particular sector, is fine with the appointment.

2007-10-02T15:03:00.000+13:00

Advertising standards authority decision on Hell Pizza

The ASA has delivered its decision on the Hell Pizza pamphlet delivered with pizzas a while back. I`ve read it but can't blog it as it is embargoed until tomorrow afternoon. Come back then, or let me know if I should break the embargo just for the "hell" of it.

In the meantime, have a read of inside the beltway the recently started blog from the Dominion Post Parliamentary Press Gallery.

2007-09-29T18:15:00.000+12:00

Minor parties starting to get support in polls

Sounds like I was right when I said the next poll would see the minor parties starting to poll. I think the Greens will poll higher than their high of 7.2 percent before the election if they get their act together and should National roll out more contentious policies. Freedom of expression - ala the Electoral Finance Bill - is important to many people. But it is not as important as their wallet. They would be more likely to vote against higher student fees( update National has just announced that they`ll increase fees)and higher doctors visits and will either go back to Labour or onto the Greens. At the moment, National supporters don't know what they are dealing with but what many do know is that they don't want to go back to a world of benefit cuts and the Employment Contracts Act.

If there is uncertainty or disagreement about National's policies, National will slip in the polls more than Labour increases and that's exactly what has happened this time.

2007-09-27T00:18:00.000+12:00

requesting official information

In the past couple of months I have sent off two OIA requests to a certain government department.

The first one was not answered within 20 working days and so it went to the Ombudsman. I eventually got a response after 20 days but it wasnt sufficiently answered - i asked them to re-answer two questions and a week later they did - which begs the question, why didn't they do it earlier.

Now my second request, due today, from the same organisation didnt arrive , despite a written reminder last week that it was to be due today (Wednesday). It is now late. I got a call from that organisation today at 4:30pm on my home ansaphone (not my cellphone when I would be more likely to answer it) with a message stating that there is a delay and I`ll get it as soon as possible. I have no idea why there is a delay because the organisation's representative didnt bother to explain that on the message, and I have no idea when as soon as possible is. It is now with the Ombudsman because that phone message breached S15(a)4 of the OIA.

Why do government departments have such a blatant disregard for the OIA and is there anything other than complaining to the Ombudsman that we can do about it?

Have a guess which organisation it is. It wouldn't be hard.

2007-09-26T23:03:00.001+12:00

National will hit us in the pocket

Well, after hinting sales of state assets last week, National wants to ensure that GP's visits will be more expensive if it becomes Government

Looks like the minor parties are going to start making their presence felt in the polls soon.

2007-09-26T21:40:00.000+12:00

Nasty poofs

GayNZ.com's story on a Bill English's 14-year-old son's Bebo site that has nasty comments about gays and emos is as abhorrent as the actual site itself. Perhaps worse. There's nothing wrong about highlighting homophobia, but doing so using a site just because it belongs to the son of an MP is disgustingly nasty and should not be tolerated by anyone, gay or straight.

I read through the Bebo site on Monday. It appears that GayNZ.com has taken a copy of the site for its records as since it was passworded, they have added some quotes that are on the site. However, supporters of the article such as GayNZ.com writer David Herkt claims the story is about English's reponse to GayNZ.com's questions on the site Herkt is a bit of a stange guy. He doesn't think that the GayNZ.com article was all that bad but he thinks using the word "poof" on the radio is "mildly offensive" so I have used it here to mildly offend him.

Herkt thinks the real story was the fact that Bill English's staff wouldn't respond to GayNZ.coms questions and attack the Bebo site's contents.Since when has Parliamentary staff been responsible for commenting on a website of the son of their boss?

Two of English's sons have Bebo sites; both of them are now passworded because one was used purely to slur his MP dad.

If those at GayNZ.com condone this sort of behaviour, thats simply an appalling state of affairs. The story is a disservice to the good work the website has done over the years.

2007-09-26T00:04:00.001+12:00

Government doing nothing to stop violence in schools

Teachers are complaiging that there is too much violence in schools. The media is reporting the complaints of child attacks on teachers in lower decile schools. Teachers are so fed up that they say they need rules telling them how far they can go when restraining aggressive pupils, to avoid leaving themselves open to accusations of assault.

But if you have a look at Government strategies for curbing antisocial behaviour you`ll see why things are getting worse. This inter-agency report recently published by the MSD, Health, Justice and Education ministries is a plan to improve conduct in those kids with a serious behavioural disorder, many of them in decile 1 schools. (Hat tip Lindsay Mitchell)

The report says is the people studied in the Christchurch Health and Development study, 13% of children raised in the highest 5% of high risk family situations reached adolescence with no obvious disorders or behaviours, learning or psyche.In other words, 13% of kids with serious behavioural difficulties turn out okay!

Well, that's alright then.

And it is just as well they turn out okay because the others will never be assisted with Government intervention if you look how these Ministries are looking to minimise adverse behaviour at schools. They see a pathway as modifying teachers behaviour, non-violence programmes, and frequent praise and rewards. Not surprisingly, for those 12 and over, the effects of this intervention is "not demonstrated" and for those aged 12 and under, improvements were "not shown"

This obviously means that this strategy does not work, which is why the policy will have no formal and meaningful evaluation. Could it not be working because the kids were not asked or encouraged to modify their behaviour in a way they could relate to? Yet it is the strategy up to 2012, which would be more relevant in addressing naughty behaviour in Sunday School children.

Oh, and while we`re on the subject of silly research, the media release of the latest Christchurch Health and Development study notes that single parenthood is not a risk factor for a child's development - it's how that family functions, and they dont function so well due to lower socio-economic status - and probably being on the dpb. I thought the way a family functions was a consequence of its form. The university is proud that they got their report published in some hot-shot US psychiatry journal. Yet if these sole parents had a live in partner, that won't change the fact that some kids had kids when they were kids, it won`t change the fact that they have lower education levels, and it won't change the fact that many of them are Maori. But it would provide more options for positive change, and they won't be on a benefit for the next 10 years.

2007-09-23T11:39:00.000+12:00

process versus outcomes

This is a bit sad, though not unexpexcted. A new school cirriculum will focus on the process of learning, rather than content. Apparently its all part of the "outcome-based approach" of skills, rather than knowledge, except the outcome is how well you know the process not whether you know the answer. That's a bit like going on your OE, not knowing where London is but as long as you know how to catch a flight there then that's OK - you have your outcome.

Imagine if policy analysts made policy like this, changing the goalposts on outcomes to make them more woolly - focusing on the process and let the outcomes work out for themselves. Oh, that's right they do. Equal Employment Opportunities is the process they use to achieve equity in the workplace. They call it procedural equalty because it his to do with process. Substantive equality is to do with equity. Education appears to be going the same way. No need to learn how to get from A to B by reading a map - as long as you know the process of asking someone who can tell you then you`ll get where you want to go.

Mary Chamberlain, overseeing the project for the Education Ministry, says "If (students) don't know how to initiate a conversation or ask for help, that's not OK".

Next thing they`ll be offering BAs in "asking for help" and analysing the Beatle's song "Help" as the content for a first year assignment. We`ll really need help then...

2007-09-23T00:12:00.000+12:00

Will National have the most friends in 2008?

Well, it's about one year out from the election and it is time to do another post on MMP. Just Left and No Right Turn have done posts on MMP which are worth reading, and although Carter gets more comments on his blog than I do on mine, I get more than No Right Turn (for reasons which are obvious), and get enough readers who read both their blogs to do a post - even though they don't comment much here. So this post is in light of Government formation.

Some people know that we don't vote for a Government in this country, we vote for a Parliament and certain members of Parliament and their staff decide who the Government is to be once we have decided the composition of Parliament. Some say that MMP is undemocratic as we don't directly have a say on who forms the Government. Some say it is the party with the most votes who is the Government - that is blatantly false. Never has been, even under FPP.

Under FPP it was the party with the most seats that got hold of power, but that party didn't necessarily have the most votes - as happened in 1978 and also in 1981 when National got fewer votes than Labour but had an 11 seat majority. Some believe that with MMP, the party with the most seats have an automatic right to form the Government. That's incorrect as well. You don't have to be the party with the most seats or the most votes under MMP to be the main party in a colation Government.

But MMP is a lot more democratic that a system where a party gets 20 percent of the votes and just two MPs - as what happend in 1978 - or when National gets in power despite 65 percent of the population voting for other parties - as happened in 1993. Had 1993 been an MMP election the Alliance would have got 23 seats (a handful of seats fewer than National got in 2002), and NZ First would have got 10 seats instead of two.

It is usually the party with the most friends in Parliament who collectively have more seats than everyone else who form a MMP Government - and these friends - ie all MP's of that party - not only don't have to be in Government, they don't even have to be on the same side of the left/right political divide. Therefore opinion polls are not about which party those polled thinks will "win the election", they are about which party will have the most friends in Parliament with the most seats after the election to form a government.

One Green commentator on Carter's blog stated that he voted Greens because he wanted them to have representation in Government. He appeared to forget that Greens currently have two government spokekpeople - for NZ Made and Energy Eficiency, but under FPP wouldn`t even be in Parliament. But if greenies vote Green to get Government representation, will they be happy to have a representative in Buy NZ Made under a National Government, possibly with a deal that they abstain on confidence and supply?

It's not beyond possibility, is it?

2007-09-20T18:08:00.000+12:00

Richard Lewis expresses disappointment

(so will Taito Philp Field when he finds out)
Updated Friday.

Richard Lewis "former leader" of Destiny Party (can`t see how he can be a "former leader" if he hasn`t resigned, been fired, or the party hasn`t deregistered) has said that Destiny is yet to be deregistered. He explained that they wanted to be upfront with the media - but didn't explain why they weren't upfront with Copeland, why they didn't name the advisory board,(perhaps because there are at least TWO Destiny church members on the all male committee and none representing the Salvation Army or Catholic churches...),why they didn't name Copeland as a co-leader, nor why Tamaki decided half an hour before the media conference to reveal the leadership details against the wishes of his fellow advisory board members.

Lewis said he was surprised at Copeland's decision to resign from the co-leadership. He had no choice but to resign. Perhaps others are disappointed too. Perhaps the wider church community - wihich the National Advisory Council purports to represent - will be disappointed when they realise that the only two "outed" members of the council are Destiny church members - so I`m told - including Taito Philip Field's representative Ian Anderson, which makes the group appear skewed toward Destiny.

Anderson released his Destiny-crafted media statement on behalf of Taito Philip Field without TPFs authorisation or consent. His parliamentary office, who have no knowlege of any Field-sanctioned authorisation of Anderson - are pretty unhappy with that. Anderson claims to be the Pacific representative on the council. Tamaki wants him there because he wants to target Mangere and secure Field's seat for the party in 2008 - but they don't want Field officially on board as leader because of his pending criminal case.

The council was touted to represent the wider christian community and made up of church leaders - but is skewed toward Destiny and against Future New Zealand. Now that Destiny didnt get their man as the leader they want to get its representative's man as the leader without that prospective leader's authorisation of their modus operandi. So much for openness and honesty - and claiming to want the advisory board secret when some later out themselves to the media when they dont get their own way.

Now that everyone has done their media releases perhaps they can move on to something else - like climate change.

2007-09-20T10:31:00.000+12:00

Paul Adams is sad

NB this post has been condensed this afternoon.

The news that Gordon Copeland has withdrawn from the new Christian Party has saddened Paul Adams who appears to have been on the advisory council or had a role in its formation. Adams was an anti-gay United Future MP. The very fact that Adams is sad means that Copeland has done the right thing in leaving the leadership of this new party.

Interesting that Adams thinks transparency in politics is “sadly lacking” when he, as a key player, appears to condone the lack of transparency in the past few days.
UPDATE
Future NZ has issued a media release stating the party was on hold at the request of the new party`s Advisory Council, of which only one person has been publicly named – Brian Tamaki. If Copeland and his Future NZ co-leader Larry Baldock go ahead with the registration of a party under the National Advisory Council, it will be in their best interests not to include such a heavy Destiny presence.

And a member of the National Advisory Council has issued a release which is a straight out grumpy release criticising Future NZ. One council member criticising others in public. Sour grapes. But did you know that the media release was released and written by a Destiny PR person? Yeah, Without The Capital Letters As Well.

I`ve just had a chat to Gordon Copeland. He`s pretty angry with Tamaki and Lewis and disappointed with some advisory council members. He is currently staying right away from all the hoo-hah, but will remain in touch with the advisory group which will re-rorganise a new party without Lewis or Tamaki as leaders - although Destiny may be on the the advisory board, meaning Lewis has no role because that role will go to Tamaki as he is the bishop.

What this group needs is some good PR this time to prevent Tamaki having any role in calling the shots as he was doing on Tuesday when he hijacked the media conference to massage his own ego. It was Tamaki who decided half an hour before the media conference to name one co-leader of the new party. I wouildnt be surprised if Tamiki had a role in the advisory council menbers release either.

2007-09-20T08:00:00.001+12:00

Gone by launchtime

It was always clear that Gordon Copeland was not happy being co-leader with Richard Lewis in this new Christian party. Today he has confirmed that he will not be co-leader with Richard Lewis. Good. It Is Finished.

This leaves several options given that Destiny is now deregistered if Tamaki is to be believed:

Destiny re-registers as Destiny Party and everyone in the Electoral Commission has a good laugh.

Destiny goes off on its own without Copeland and Lewis is the leader under Destiny Party Mk2.

Copeland is leader of a new party or co-leader with someone else and Lewis takes another role.

Future New Zealand, Copeland's party registers with the Electoral Commission.

Two and four combined seem likely.

Whatever, this was Tamaki's ego that undid this, and Copeland has not spoken to Tamaki since the media conference. But remember, this party doesnt exist yet, and Destiny was not authorised to announce anything about co-leadership at the media conference. In terms of Future New Zeland that will continue to be registered as they have no official ties with Destiny.

Copeland should formally announce that he is not going to be involved in a party where Brian Tamaki has any role and get out now, even if Lewis steps down as co-leader because Tamaki is on the advisory board and his ego means that he will demand a role somewhere. Copeland will get more support from the media and the Christian and political communities if he takes this stance than if he continues to liaise with Tamaki and Lewis as the trust has already gone.

2007-09-19T20:02:00.001+12:00

If I was Copeland I`d leave Destiny now

After reading this report regarding the Destiny church party stuff-up it confirmed most things I have suspected. This is worth reading too for a laugh.

Gordon Copeland is a good MP who has been sucked into an arrangement by a bunch of ego-tripping idiots who couldn't arrange a pissup in a brewery, let alone a conference to communicate basic information to the media. Destiny didn't even bother to let Copeland know of details of a media conference that involved the announcement of a party where Copeland is co-leader. And because they didn't tell Copeland that they were going to announce Lewis as leader they decided not to announce Copeland as leader either.

Any other party would have arranged a media conference with the two co-leaders and advised people the truth about the group that set it up.When TV3 News rang around today they found no senior clergymen or representatives have signed up at all except Tamaki.So already the party is has too much Destiny inolvement, whish would lessen appeal.

Copeland met his co-leader Richard Lewis for two hours today and later said Lewis had "profusely apologised" for his "error of judgement" in not telling the MP about the announcement, despite giving an undertaking he would do so.

If I was Gordon Copeland, I`d start the process and leave the Destiny lot now and concentrate on Future New Zealand. Actually, I think he will. Then Destiny can go ahead and name their party Destiny's Child for all I care. Feedback I am getting is that many church and Christian leaders don't like what is going on. They would like one unified Christian vehicle as long as it is not dominated by Destiny. Destiny just dont get along with other denominations unless it is on their own terms - and when it is on their own terms they invariably stuff it up.

My original post on yesterday's developments is here

and a MAJOR UPDATE to hand, Copeland - well Future New Zealand - is cutting off all discussions involving Lewis/Tamaki. I have been told something will be on Morning Report tomorrow.

2007-09-18T22:00:00.000+12:00

Catholic matchmaking

Are you a Catholic? Looking for love? Well, check out Catholic Matchmaker Just a warning. It's not for all Catholics - only a certain kind of Catholic.

If you want to register you must reflect the teachings of the Catholic Church in New Zealand - and the world (is there a difference?), and cannot condone or assist in relationships that are expressly against the teachings of the church. In other words if you are gay, divorced, married or in a civil union, like premarital sex, use contraceptives or are a Catholic Priest, don't bother to join. According to some in the Church, marriage should be the potential goal.

The AIDS Foundation don`t like it because gays are excluded and they say that it is discriminatory. Yet, if this site reflects the teachings of the Church, it is no more discriminatory than refusing people who will have pre-marital sex - which so happens to be all sexually active gay people (who, according to the AIDS Foundstion should ALL be wearing contraceptives,) and probably a great deal of heterosexual peole as well. It is no more discriminatory than refusing people who plan to use contraceptives even after they get married - so why don't the contraceptive-supporting AIDS Foundation point this out as well - or is the Foundation still a front for gay people?

The site is run by a Catholic couple who met over the Internet and will be launched on September 29 to coincide with the feast of Raphael, the patron saint of happy meetings.

2007-09-18T14:51:00.000+12:00

Destiny church announcent

Destiny Church leader Brian Tamaki made an announcement today about the future of the Destiny Party. I didn't hear the media conference that was broadcast live over the Internet but apparently Destiny Church has posted it on YouTube - and there is no media release.

However the Party is disbanding and a new party is to be created in about four weeks with Destiny leader Richard Lewis and another leader which has not been announced. I wouldn`t be surprised if it was Mark Mortlock unless he has declined an offer. Sounds like current politicians are not part of this new party unless it is Copeland that is the new co-leader.

If Copeland is not the leader, this party will potentially be more likely to split the Christian vote than the current political arrangements. However I`m predicting that the party will not have broad Christian support despite key denominational figures being involved.

In terms of Christian politics, it makes a mockery of Tamaki's prophesy that Destiny would be the Government in 2008. I suspect most Christians would just laugh at the party and vote National or whomever else they were going to vote for.

UPDATE The media conference is on YouTube here
The New leader is Copeland I like Gordon Copeland - he's the most measured of the Christian bunch. But why on earth didn't they announce that at the media conference just two hours or so ago? Perhaps it was because they didn`t tell Copeland who his co-leader was. Copeland appears unhappy that Lewis has been chosen as his co-leader. He appears to have found out via media and is reportedly surprised. Not a good start. Copeland is a Roman Catholic. He has a bishop. That Bishop is not Brian. Oh, the irony... Will there be a fight between Copeland and Lewis as to the number 1/2 spots on the list? Will any diasagreement get elevated to the bishops- will there be a big bishopric bitchfight? Will God notice? Will it matter anyway....

UPDATE 2 Oh, this is a mess! After the Destiny Church media person e-mailed me and told me that there would be no media release after the Press Conference, they've gone and done one. Go and have a read. Count the spelling mistakes. Every Single Word Is In Capital Letters!

2007-09-17T20:32:00.001+12:00

Fronted up today

After less than a day's notice I fronted up to the Justice and Electoral Select Committee today to do a short submission on the Electoral Finance Bill. About half the committee were Labour MPs and many were list MPs. It's the first time I have seen an MP who as a cabinet minister had a part in approving the wording of this bill - only to see him on the select committee considering submissions. Yes David Benson Pope was twitching away as I spoke. He even asked a couple of questions, one of which had nothing much to do with my submission. Labour are hell-bent on getting this bill through and they dont care what shape it is in as long as it passes.

If you want to know what I submitted, heres an idea - It is an article on the Electoral Finance Bill that was published in this week's Salient.

Meanwhile over at No Right Turn Idiot Savant states there has been no real effort on the part of the media to grapple with the issues raised by the bill, or the problems it is intended to address. This is a tremendous disservice to the New Zealand public, and I think we deserve better.

Fron what I have seen, there has not been much effort on the part of the select committee to grapple with the problems raised by the bill either. Most of them appear to be more focused on getting oral submissions out of the way so they can write their report recommending the bill be passed with as few amendments as possible, and deal with the SOPs as they roll in.

What a farce!

2007-09-15T19:28:00.000+12:00

How can Labour win?

I've said it before and I`ll say it again: I give Labour no show in the next election. I'm pretty good at picking elections. I've covered at least three for the media. Last election I picked not only the date but the outcome, including the number of Maori Party seats. I also picked the number of Maori seats too :-).

How ever the lead up to the election is diferent. A year out there is a clear alternative at the same time that the Government is making more of a mess of things than they did before the last two, if not three elections. Labour does not have a clue what to do and the public is beginning to believe not only that, but believe that John Key, despite his lack of announced policies, may have more ideas and more vision - even if he doesn't. The only way Labour can possibly be in Government after the election is the demotion of the tired trio of Cullen, Maharey, and Hodgson from the front bench - replaced by Laban, Cunliffe and Jones along with a wider reshuffle.

Helen Clark won't do that. I would pick a National win, with the Greens getting over the 5%, UnitedFuture getting about the same as the Progressives and Destiny, NZ First and the Maori Party doing about the same or a little better as the last election and ACT doing a lot better.

Time for a change.Even if that change is more of the same with a little more vision before they conk out.

2007-09-15T08:25:00.000+12:00

Another Herald cock-up

Gee the Herald has really gone downhill lately. Here's another mistake. The Herald says "Ex-All Black convicted of drunk -driving"

Except the person concerned is not a former All Black. Someone needs to tell the Herald that the Black Caps are not our national rugby team.
update Looks like someome from the Herald must have seen this post. The headline has been changed to the correct sporting team.

2007-09-11T09:48:00.001+12:00

you can still submit to the Electoral Finance Bill

You can still make a submission to the Electoral Finance Bill. The online form is here and still in working order
update(Wed) They have now closed.
UPDATE Friday. I have made a submission but this morning I was rung by the select committee and told to be ready to make my submission on Monday morning, and they wanted an answer there and then as to my attendance. Forget that I may have had to work or had another appointment. I get less than a working days notice or I can`t do an oral submission. Aren`t there standing orders or rules around that?

2007-09-10T21:09:00.000+12:00

wasting money on child abuse

Our Commie Children's Commissioner Cindy Kiro is getting $5m from the state every year to save five people from child abuse. Should she be successful these children are likely to be Maori, living with parents who are not married to each other and are not the child's father or mother.In the year to June, 46 percent of child abuse notifications to CYFS came from Maori households, and half kids in Maori households do not live with parents who are married to each other.

Cindy Kiro's scheme would make it compulsory for every newborn's caregiver to nominate an authorised provider to assess their family's progress through home visits.Those who refused to take part would be referred to welfare authorities

And what will welfare authorities do?Write another report they don't follow through with? Nobody has actually said what they would do. The Government has run out of ideas.

This should be a targeted or tailored service - its just that the Government has no idea who to target or tailor the service to, so they want to include all parents even those who take good care of their kids.

So, under this plan, if you have kids, now or in the future, then you are a suspected child abuser unless you are told otherwise, especially if you refuse to take part.

This is what sort of society we end up with when marriage is devalued and Plunket is purposely underfunded and underutilised by this Government. Money for the Families Commission should be going to Plunket.

2007-09-07T22:29:00.000+12:00

Bradford pulls her bill

Green MP Sue Bradford has decided to pull her bill that recommends the lowering of the voting age, because it lacked support.

I have listened to public debate and realise the time is not right for success on voting age initiatives.

Heh. She knows that passing a bill is has nothing to do with public debate, it has to do with whether you can get - or arrange to bully - most MPs onside.

It's very hard to get Helen Clark to arrange for that persuasive or bullying approach she got on the smacking bill when a law you arre attempting to change is entrenched, as you need a higher proportion of Parliament to pass it.

It was never going to happen.

2007-09-07T22:25:00.000+12:00

sick, busy, blogging

Well, I've just got out of bed. I've been a bit sick since July, hence the lack of blogging. Along with family, work , study and Drs vists, life is a bit busy hence the lack of blogging . Hopefully the blogging will pick up - and I`ll be able to watch some World Cup Rugby as well....

2007-09-06T10:22:00.000+12:00

Literacy cards

If you can't read or write, never fear, you can have a literacy card to break down barriers for dealing with banks, insurance companies and Government departments.

It's a good idea, although those who don't want to help themselves and learn how to read and write through the many literacy courses and secondary schools on offer should not get a card in the same way that a person does not get NCEA if they leave school at 13.

2007-09-03T21:30:00.000+12:00

Having to starve to live

After 53 days on a hunger strike, Ali Reza Panah, the Iranian refugee detained without trial for 20 months has finally been granted bail. He has been denied refugee status after converting to Christianity and is to live with an Anglican Church vicar. Yet he may still be deported even though has already been sentenced to death by the Iranian Government.

Interesting, though the reasons for granting bail. The Labour Department says there are "exceptional circumstances" to his release. Namely his state of health, Iran's refusal to accept its citizens from other countries unless they sign applications for a passport or travel documents, and the length of time in jail.

Now is the only reason the other two Iranian Christian converts are not similarly released is because they are not on a hunger strike and will not die on New Zealand's doorstep?

If you're interested, this week's Salient has a good feature on Ali Panah, noting that he was recently rushed to hospital in a critical condition, and talk of him being deported to a third country is in effect a route back to Iran, and that Immigration Minister David Cunliffe is a member of Amnesty International, which is one of several organisations campaigning for Panah to be granted a temporary visa.

2007-09-03T09:00:00.001+12:00

Bars told to cut the noise

It is NZ safety week this week, and Department of Labour officials have gone to bars and club to tell them to cut down the noise levels even though bar staff have plugs. This, of course, is a reaction to noise-induced hearing loss.

But I bet Department of Labour officials won't go around businesses and government departments - including their own - telling data entry operators to slow down to avoid occuptional overuse syndrome (OOS). That's because they see regular breaks as the answer to controlling OOS, but they don't see hearing protection as the answer to noise-induced hearing loss - they want the noise levels reduced.

2007-09-01T13:52:00.000+12:00

Paid Parental Leave, the low wage economy, and valuing motherhood

The way the Government is handling paid parental leave is a bit of a joke. We have had paid parental leave since 1973 - its called the dpb. If wages weren't so low, we wouldn't need paid parental leave for workers, mothers could afford to stay home for the kids while their partner works.

But our government is quite happy to administer a low wage economy topped up by Working for Families (WFF) payments. This neoliberal approach benefits employers. The Government has acknowledged that it has set a benchmark for basic living standards, hence the WFF payments, but WFF is almost like a subsidy to employers in that it allows them to pay their employees low wages while affording KiwiSaver contributions.

This low wage economy includes women who go to work to prop up the family income - which reduces their WFF payments with a very high marginal tax rate - and stick the kids in a creche, paid for, of course, by the parents, many of whom are on low incomes and not getting enough reduced family support payments to cover basic childcare if they can't access the 20 hours free childcare scheme.

No policies on income splitting for tax purposes, though. That will even assist childless couples if a partner doesn't work.

If the Government says it values motherhood and that motherhood should be a full time job for the first year of a child's life, a year's paid parental leave should start now - not in 2015 - or it should at least provide income splitting for tax purposes in the interim. If it's good enough for 20 hours free policy to start for 3-4 year olds now, its good enough for paid parental leave for parents with children under 1 to start now as well - why discriminate based on the age of the child?

I note there is no similar policies for parents of two year olds apart from childcare subsidies for low income families. Why can the government pay "20 hours free" to parents of 2-year-olds for a year instead of parents paying creches - in some cases with much of one partners low income? The government wants to force parents back to work, that's why, and pay for others to parent kids during the day because it only values motherhood if there is a subsequent economic value attached to it.

Perhaps the Government doesn't want to pay PPL for 52 weeks right now because the WFF package cost will dramatically increase.

2007-08-28T19:59:00.000+12:00

Youth unemployment falls - but more stay on benefits for longer

Newstalk ZB has said that a Labour Department survey has found more young people are in work and their average wages are increasing. They conclude that youth unemployment - those aged 18-24 - is falling because in 2002, youth unemployment made up 28 percent of the dole, but now it is only 18 percent. So why dont they survey actual youth unemployment - ie: 16/17 year olds? Because it is rising, that's why. Just like the minimum wage increase increases the income of those on the minimum wage -which are mostly youth.

What the report didn't say is that the dole figures are only a quarter of what they were in 2002 and that some youth in 2002 are no longer classed as youth - but could still be on a benefit. Also, more people are staying on some benefts longer. In 2002 there were 67,144 on the Sickness and Invalids benefit for more than 12 months, the highest ever. That's compared to 67279 for just the Invalids benefit this year - and of course that is the figure for those who have been on the benefit for more than two years.

The Sickness benefit has 20 percent more long termers as well compared with 2002. But get this: more than 5500 on the Sickness and Invalids benefit for more than two years as at February 2007 came off ACC, or are there because of an accident where they didnt get weekly compenstion - and more than 100 were aged 18-24. Perhaps the Labour Department (Party) doesn't want to survey youth Sickness and Invalids benefit figures - some of whom probably should be on the dole or on ACC.

2007-08-28T10:44:00.000+12:00

spinning a referendum on MMP

Graeme Hunt doesn't like MMP. So he got UMR Research to ask 750 people what they thought and concluded that there is strong support for a referendum.

Yet 43 percent of those polled had a neutral opinion on MMP. That's not strong support. In fact a higher percentage thought MMP was had a positive impact rather than negative - nearly twice as many, in fact. Look at his justification.

"What New Zealanders are unhappy with is the power MMP grants to small parties which are unable to win constituency seats. They don't want to see the tail wagging the dog as happened over the anti-smacking debate."

Actually, at the end of the smacking debate, the dog wagged the tail. That's why the legislation passed. Furthermore how many small parties are in parliament that have not gained constituency seats? One. How many parties are in Parliament that have not had a party member who was an MP previously - none.

There appears to be more opposition to the list than the minor parties. But Hunt doesn't want to spin that way because he supports the supplementary system.Hunt is the author of Why MMP Must Go: The Case for Ditching the Electoral Disaster of the Century. Yet the interpretation of his UMR poll is just spin in line with the book - and even then it doesn't measure up.

2007-08-26T16:28:00.000+12:00

Children's Commissioner is an expert

The Children's Commissioner Cindy Kiro has hit back at Christine Rankin after Rankin criticised her for not attending a child abuse march yesterday. Dr Kiro says the organisers, including the Sensible Sentencing Trust, should leave the experts deal with the problem. She says most credible child protection agencies would not have bothered attending the march either.

Thats the problem. The experts are not dealing with the problems of child abuse, all they are doing is making positive noises about prevention with no associated action or outcomes. Somebody has to speak up in their absence. It's pretty rich for Kiro to say that we have to support parents to care for children when the Government refuses to fund any broad-based parenting support apart from telling people they can't smack their kids, and sees nothing wrong with women shacking up with boyfrends half their age who end up as defacto parental child abusers.

2007-08-23T22:02:00.000+12:00

Labour is really desperate

After the strategy to attack John Key's addresses backfired, Labour was back for more today - this time about Key being in business with some people four years after they allegedly designed and built a leaky home.
Labour has lost the plot. You wonder what will happen next, as Colin Espiner says

What’s next? A breathless account about how Key failed to return his overdue books to the Christchurch Public Library in 1973? A thunderous denunciation of the National leader for failing to donate to a boy scout fundraising drive?

Labour’s strategy is clear enough - to make Key appear shifty and untruthful. But running a personal attack campaign is risky at the best of times, and usually only succeeds if public sympathy rests with the attacker, rather than the attacked.

(Labour) should get on with governing the country. That’s what Labour was elected to do - and the only thing that will give it any chance of doing again in 2008. Not making wet bus ticket attacks on Key, which only serve to underline just how serious a threat Labour believes he is.

2007-08-21T14:57:00.001+12:00

How terrible! John Key has been to a strip club!

This is shocking news! John Key has been to a strip club. Who cares. Helen Clark says that is not "appropriate entertainment". Someone should photoshop her as a pole dancer - its the only way she`ll get ahead in the poles.

Anyway, this is news? Why don`t they write about Labour people who go to massage parlours and Destiny Churches. Why don't the media get their cameras out and go to Boobs on Bikes tomorrow and see how many MPs and kids are there - to look at the bikes, of course. Nice bikes they will have, too. Should be all over YouTube tomorrow.

2007-08-21T11:25:00.000+12:00

WINZ turns unemployed away to keep unemployment down

Work and Income has boasted that there are no 18-19 year olds on the dole in the Bay of Plenty Area because they are all in work or training. We now know why.

They applied but Work and Income said they weren't eligible because they weren't 20. So they turned them away. They wouldn`t even let these kids register as job seekers to access the courses they provide.

Yet the unemployment benefit is available to those 18 and over who are seeking work. Some have been told that they can't apply for the unemployment benefit unless they attended a course and then they could access the student allowance. This is unlawful. Particularly as some courses are dependent on registering as a job seeker with WINZ - which you can do without even getting a benefit.

Such people should be back paid benefit money from application and so benefit advocates are threatening court action against Work and Income staff who deny people entitlements. WINZ managers who blatantly deny people entitlements and access to training opportunities should be sacked if they are going to harass genuine job seekers for the purpose of denying beneficiaries their paltry $118.98 a week.

2007-08-17T18:09:00.000+12:00

ACCs rehabilitation

I worte this earlier in the week and it is clear that ACC is about getting people off ACC through its vocational assessments that don`t actually rehabilate.

The problem with ACC is the maximum length of time allowed for vocational rehabilitation under the ACC Act is three years. Meaning if you haven't been rehabilitated properly you are shafted to hide the fact that ACC can' rehabilitate you. What this essentially means is that ACC sends you on a vocational assessment, and if that doesnt shaft you they then send you on another one. Then another one. Some people have been on six in the past three years. ACC want to send as many people on vocational assessments as they can so they say they have " rehabilitated" people.

This isn't rehabilitation and if ACC thinks it is, then they should be funding legal fees for people who challenge decisions who are now on benefits - or don't qualify because their partner works - because they are not rehabilitated, despite paying ACC levies so they can get rehabilitated should they have an accident. If you have had a Vocational Assessment in the past year and have been shafted please leave a note with contact e-mail details.

2007-08-17T09:18:00.000+12:00

Maori party accuses top cop of racism

Hone Harawira has accused the police of racism after top cop allegedly said Maori and Pacific people are more likely to be Tasered because they are more likely to be violent. Perhaps he said Maori and Pacific people are more likely to be violent and so therefore are more likely to be Tasered.

That's not racist any more than saying Maori on $100,000 are more likely to be rich than Samoans on the dole, or Maori are more likely to be in jail than those of other ethnicities as higher proportion of Maori commit crimes punishable by imprisonment.

However one could be tempted to say that Maori MPs are more likely to skive off into the Australian outback instead of attending to official business compared to non-Maori MPs.

2007-08-15T21:40:00.000+12:00

Govt assesses man to be a university lecturer although has reading age of seven

Willie Allen is a former panelbeater and has a reading age of seven. He is currently on the invalids benefit because he was kicked off ACC because ACC said he was fit enough and able to do the job of a university lecturer, a receptionist, or a property manager. ACC manager Gerard McGreevy stated on Nine to Noon that the reading age was irrelevant, that Allen's reading was not tested by ACC, but he could work. Allen's ACC vocational assessor wasn't told abut his reading age.

Allen couldn't read the letter that kicked him off ACC and a now has a lawyer who also spoke on RNZ. McGreevy couldn't tell Kathryn Ryan how many people have been kicked off ACC and are on benefits but said that ACC occupational assessors do a very good job.

Pity Kathryn Ryan didn't ask whether the assessors did a good job assisting in rehabilitation or a good job in removing people from the ACC scheme on to benefits. If you are on ACC and have a letter telling you that you have an appointment for a vocational assessor, you should be letting your lawyer know because that is the first step in kicking you off ACC because they will most likely tell you you can do a job that you either can't do, are unfit to, do or are over or under qualified to do.

And once the tell you that, you`ll need to visit Work and Income because your Weekly Compensation will be cut.

2007-08-14T09:39:00.001+12:00

Clark admits the Electoral Finance Bill is crap

Helen Clark has admitted that the EFB aimed at shutting down free speech and third parties (but allowing political party coffers to be filled up via anonymous donations) in an Election year needs to be changed - but only after the media and blogs pointed that out to her. Yet she had a hand in drafting the bill so she knew what she was doing.She wants more donations than everyone else because Labour is broke and losing support.

"It may well be that in endeavouring to fix that, the net's been cast too wide," she said on Newstalk ZB."That's why you need good scrutiny at a select committee."

So well paid Cabinet Ministers and Crown Law don`t have to provide scrutiny - is it left over to public input with comment from MInisters only if the media and blogs are critical?

One of the ludicrous things in the bill is this: if you express a political opinion in an election year in " any form of words or graphics" you will have to sign a statutory declaration declaring how much you have spent on this expression, and unless you register with the state in order to spend up to $60,000, you will have to confirm that money spent is less than $5000, even if all you do is to spend $1.50 on chalk to express a political opinion such as " Hodgson may be the Health Minister but he is sick in the head" - and you would still break the law if you don't put down you name and address on the bottom of the chalked slogan.

Some highly paid people should be earning their money, not approving unworkable law.

UPDATESteven Price from the Coalition of Open Government has responded stated that most of the problems would be solved if we used the wording in the British law - then we can deal with Governments failure to do anything about secret donations and ensure that election advertising laws are at least restricted to that of a political purpose associated with an election - that is, not restricting individuals from campaigning or protesting or restricting lobby groups from doing their jobs or attempting to influence the political agenda in election year.

2007-08-13T17:09:00.000+12:00

why the Kahui's should never have been parents

Reading the reports of the Kahui court case it is quite clear what the problem was: these two were quite happy shacking up but didn't want to commit to being parents, and Chris Kahui didn't want to go out and get a job. So why was he on a benefit, if you have to be available and looking for full time work to be eligible for a benefit?

Instead the couple argued about Chris Kahui's lack of work motivation, and King felt that when she was tired she could take off to her mums, sisters, wherever else..while Chris would go around and get her - and heaven knows where the kids would be and whether the whanau even though there may be something wrong.

No responsibility for parenting,that's what. By both parents, by the grandparents, or by the rest of the whanau. And y'know, our Government doesn't even care about such responsibilities enough to say anything about it, let alone do anything about it apart from given these idiots family assistance as well as a benefit and allowing them to be bludging off the state - and they wonder why our child abuse figures are so high.

2007-08-13T14:19:00.001+12:00

Universities defend WINZ article

Both this week's Salient editorial and the National and local student associations have come out in support of the story I did couple of weeks back entitled how to rip off WINZ.One reveals even more entitlements you can get off Work and Income, if only you knew about them...

Both VUWSA President Geoff Hayward and NZUSA Co-President Joey Randall believe that the article emphasises the inadequate support students have from the government.
“In absence of strong commitment from the government to institute a universal student allowance, students have to find these loopholes to survive,” Hayward says.

According to Randall, the best route was “students [having] access to assistance that they require and [having] food and power without working extensive hours.”

2007-08-12T10:48:00.000+12:00

Justice Minister a danger to democracy

Matthew Hooton from the Sunday Star Times says that Justice Minister Mark Burton is a danger to democracy and should be sacked. He is trying to push through his Electoral Finance bill.

The legislation -developed in secret by Justice Minister Mark Burton under the guidance of Labour's election strategist Pete Hodgson - does nothing to stop a repeat of the 2005 pledge card rort or the anonymous donations and secret trusts that Helen Clark once said were so undemocratic. She's now decided she needs them.

Nor is the legislation about pamphlets that spread malicious gossip about our politicians, or those saying "Vote National", "Vote Labour" or "Don't Vote Green". Nor even is it about dodgy pamphlets that hide the identity of their publisher. Our existing law deals with all these issues, if only our police would enforce it.

Burton's legislation is far broader. It restricts almost every expression of opinion, on any topic about which a politician has stated a view, by people who declare who they are, where they live, how much they're spending and who is funding them.

Plunket would be caught if it published a pamphlet saying "Politicians Need To Act On Child Abuse", or even "Child Abuse Is Wrong". Press statements saying "National Does U-Turn" or "Labour Attacks Free Speech" would also be regulated by the state, as would placards at protest marches.

The legislation also goes well beyond the traditional three months of an election campaign. From New Year's Day to mid-November - 10 1/2 months - it would be illegal for anyone other than the government to spend more than $60,000 talking to the public about a policy issue.

Sixty thousand dollars may sound like a lot - it's the income at which Michael Cullen says we're rich - but it buys almost nothing in terms of mass communication.

Run just two full-page advertisements in section A of this newspaper, saying "Cut Taxes", and Labour's legislation would send you to jail.

Television advertising is out of the question, as is anything significant on radio. It might just be possible to dump a million mass-produced brochures in letterboxes - a la the Exclusive Brethren - but it would not be possible for a group to post a sensible, serious letter to everyone in the Bay of Plenty.

Burton has set the threshold so low not because he thinks it is fair, but precisely because he knows it is not enough for Labour's critics to get their message across to the public.

In the 12 months leading up to election 2005, the government spent $12 million - a million dollars a month - to remind us to check if we were eligible for Working for Families handouts. A group wanting to criticise Working for Families - disclosing exactly who they are -would now be restricted to just $6000 a month in election year.

There is not just a cap on spending. Burton's legislation sets a threshold above which groups must first register with the state before saying anything.

At an electorate level, the limit is $500. Buy more than 10 rolls of 50c stamps, with the intention of sending a letter to Wigram or Epsom voters about something on which Jim Anderton or Rodney Hide has expressed an opinion, and you will need to register with the state. Don't expect to keep your job in the public service if you do. But, if you don't register, the police will be able to enter your home to search for the stamps.

The most honest defence of Burton's plans has come from my colleague Chris Trotter. In another paper, he says the proposals are "pay-back for National's ferocious `pledge card' campaign". National forced Labour to repay the $824,524 it stole from the taxpayer, and Trotter argues Burton's legislation is the consequence. Trotter says the bill exempts Greenpeace, the unions and Forest & Bird from the spending limits - which, he says approvingly, will keep the Left in play while hampering the Right.

It's not clear whether our justice minister has a predilection for jackboots or is just incompetent and doesn't understand his own legislation. Either way, he's a danger to our democracy. His bill should be binned and he should be sacked.

2007-08-10T11:44:00.000+12:00

In the ballot - Paid Parental Leave Entitlement bill

Over at No Right Turn, there is another roundup of bills in the ballot.One of them is the Parental Leave Entitlement (Lump Sum Payments) Bill This bill, from Paula Bennett, proposes to amend the Parental Leave and Employment Protection Act 1987 to allow those eligible for paid parental leave the option of receiving a lump sum rather than fortnightly payments.

But theres a catch. If you get a benefit you don't qualify. That may sound fair enough, but what this means is that those who are working part time and on an abated benefit wont qualify, but even worse, those who are getting an accomodation supplement - even as a non-beneficiary - won't qualify either unless they suspend their supplement before taking leave, as the accommodation supplement is defined as a benefit under S3 of the Social Security Act 1964.

But Working For Families is paid for by IRD unless you are on a core benefit. Over at No Right Turn it is claimed that WFF payments are "benefits" and therefore anyone who accesses WFF will not be eligible for Paid Parental Leave under this bill.

Yet WFF payments are not classed as "benefits" under the Social Security Act, even though they are paid by MSD if you are on a core benefit. Not sure whether they are classed as "benefits anywhere else, either. Neither are student allowances. If you work while collecting these you should still be able to access the provisions of this bill when it becomes law - but the provision regarding accommodation supplements appears not to have been thought through very well and will need to be changed.

UPDATE Just had a Mark Prebble moment...

I should have also remembered to say that most students on the student allowance get the accommodation supplement - and many of them work. I am one. Now even though that is paid via Studylink, the fact that accommodation supplement is a benefit will preclude such workers being eligible under the Bennett bill.

2007-08-08T15:35:00.001+12:00

when will they discuss the real factors on child abuse?

Here are the facts on child abuse.

Nearly all child abuse deaths are at the hands of a male parent or Maori mum, and that former parent is not usually married to the child's other parent - nor is he often the father of the child. The fact that abused children's parents are unmarried and that people are shacking up with their boyfriends is a bigger child abuse issue than ethnicity or poverty - although those who shack up with their boyfriends who abuse kids are more likely to be Maori and on benefits - or at least poor which makes it a Maori concern.

Other relevant facts: The fact that Maori don't often have mum and dad to parent kids is relevant - we have whanau who pass kids around like a joint, and this is encouraged by government policy treating any bunch of people as a family group. The fact that all these kids that get murdered has a mum or a dad that should be paying child support but are often not - and if they are they are not paying the required amount. The fact that people aren't spending the WFF money on their kids, they `re paying off fines and bills.

Some people should just have some balls and say that people's living arrangements have a great deal to do with how many kids are being killed, and that Govt policy is encouraging these types of living arrangements and child abuse agencies are too scared to speak out and say that because they are scared they will lose govt funding. It is comparatively rare for kids who are living with both their mum and dad who are married to each other to be abused. Also, most Maori kids do not live with both their mum and dad who are married to each other. Many are living with either a sole parent or at least one parent who didn't conceive them. These are the kids at risk and the stats will indicate that.

Only if we take the above into consideration will we have the honest debate some are seeking.

Rant over.

2007-08-07T22:08:00.000+12:00

Maori Party doesn't like to crack down on gangs

The Government is going to double the sentence for anyone taking part in an organised crime group in an effort to crack down on gangs.The Maori Party doesnt like new measures to get tough on gangs because there are too many Maori in gangs. Well, there are too many Maori child abusers as well. The Maori Party says that it opens the door for Police to label any grouping of Maori together as a gang.

That's a stupid thing to say. A whanau, the Maori Party and a hui are hardly going to be labeled as a gang any more than a Maori with kids is labelled a child abuser. Perhaps it is a veiled admission that gangs are a Maori problem - just like child abuse is.

What would happen if we double the sentence for unmarried Maori child abusers while we are at it. Then see what the Maori Party and the Sensible Sentencing Trust will have to say about that. It won`t happen unless our Government is silly enough to consider that gangs as a group are involved in crime to the same extent that unmarried Maori parents as a group are involved in child abuse.

2007-08-04T11:04:00.000+12:00

what Prebble knew but didn't reveal

Helen Clark has expressed disappointment in Environment Ministry Chief Executive Hugh Logan for failing to mention the crucial conversation he had had with Benson-Pope regarding the Madeleine Setchell case. Given that Benson-Pope, Logan and State Services Commissioner Mark Prebble had all privately expressed opinion on the appropriateness of Setchells employment without even knowing her political opinion,(and hid that from the public) why hasn't Clark expressed disappointment with Prebble as she has done with the other two?

Prebble can hardly dismiss Logan for not revealing that Benson-Pope had spoken to him about his views on Setchell's employment, given that he himself had a similar "forgotten" conversation with the Minister.

If Prebble has a legal obligation to oversee any inquiry, he surely has some obligation to remember the truth. Given that he didn't, he should come under more scrutiny as Logan for his omission, given his carefully worded Dominion Post piece omitting the relevant truth. Thats not merely being forgetful. It's the SSC's job is to keep the public service honest. To do that you have to be fully honest yourselves.

Prebble doesn't make mistakes like this accidentally. Like Benson-Pope, he should be held accountable for this omission if he wants the public to believe we have a neutral public service.

2007-08-03T12:37:00.000+12:00

how to rip off WINZ???

Well thats what happens when you write an article with a sensationalist headline... I did an article for this weeks Issue of Salient on how to get full and correct entitlements - and extras from Work and Income. All above board, nothing illegal yet they called it How to Rip Off WINZ. I did not write that headline. Work and Income aren't even called WINZ.

It's not a story on how to rip of Work and Income. I don't condone rip offs. But the NZ Herald has run a story on it and TVNZ is doing a story on it as well.Stuff, NZPA and Newstalk ZB have all covered the story and RNZ's checkpoint did an interview with the Salient editor. Close Up@7 pulled its story as Nia Glassie died. Some people need to read past headlines, though.

If Work and Income was advising everyone what they were entitled to, and gave people what they were entitled to when asked, none of the content in the article would be a surprise to anyone. Some people at Work and Income don't even know the difference between policy and legislation. I spoke to one call centre rep today who didn't know what "legislation" was - they just understood what their boss told them.

2007-08-01T13:43:00.000+12:00

Audrey Young is "bloody angry" with John Key

It hasn`t been a good few days for NZ Herald chief political reporter Audrey Young. She says John Key has said he has been misrepresented by her and has issued a press statement which Young maintains misrepresents what happened. The last MP to make Young angry got fired (well forced to resign). David Benson-Pope misled her.

If you want to find more, just click on the links.

2007-07-31T15:22:00.000+12:00

Government thinks only men are abusers

The Government wants all hospitals to ask questions of women aged 15-65 when they visit hospitals. Whilst in hospital every women will be asked these three questions to see if she may have been abused:
* Has anybody hurt or threatened you?
* Have you ever felt controlled or always criticised?
* Have you been asked to do anything sexual that you didn't want to do?

They forgot one question: Have you smacked your kids?

The idea is that asking these questions is supposed to assist in reducing child abuse because if a woman is abused the chances are is that her children are too.

So do women not instigate abuse against children? Obviously not according to this initiative. So if it's okay to say if child abuse is a male problem, why is it then racist to say it's a Maori problem, given that 60 percent of reported child abuse is committed by Maori. Take out the Maori population and New Zealand would not be the third worst country in the developed world for infant death

First they want schools to parent kids, now they want doctors to be cops! We can't have cops asking " have you been asked to do anything sexual that you didn't want to do", can we.

2007-07-30T10:15:00.000+12:00

child abuse - Office of the Children's Commissioner should be disbanded

Its all well and good Prime Minister Helen Clark waffling on today on Breakfast TV about how bad child abuse - particularly Maori child abuse - is, and how sentences are not long enough. During the smacking debate a prominent MP said " the signal we are sending today is that child abuse is unacceptable".

And you know, it was just a signal. A bit like a statement of intent - meaning "we`d really like this to happen but we probably won't put anything in place to make it happen unless we really need to". We have a Children's Commissioner who is Maori who is not even making substantial comment on what to do about child abuse. She says we need decent investment in programmes.

What programmes? Sterilisation programmes, parenting programmes, or politically correct half-arsed programmes that comes from her office? I spoke with the Children's Commissioner today and asked her to investigate these latest cases, as she is able to do under the Children's Commissioner Act, but she wasn't prepared to commit to doing that. She seems totally unwilling to do any investigative work whatsoever. A good start would be to adhere to the Childrens Commissioner Act and immediately refer such cases to CYFS for investigation or investigate yourselves. To date the OCC has done neither in the Rotorua cases. Thats how slack child abuse investigation is in this country. Too busy talking about investment in programmes than to investigate real child abuse.

Sensible Sentencing Trust's Kelly Te Heuheu is calling child abuse a race issue. Common denominators in most of our child abuse cases are that they are Maori, their parents are are not married or living together, and they are on welfare or very low incomes. While I do agree that Maori elders need to front up, I also agree that the Office of the Children's Commissioner also needs to stop producing useless reportsfrom her office and front up to issues, investigate child abuse cases - or the commission should be disbanded for failing to adequately address child rights.
updateHowever, given that several people from the OCC have visited this site today, they may wish to advise if since this post was written, the two Rotorua cases have been referred for investigation or a decision has been made not to investigate. Then the post can be updated.

2007-07-28T17:34:00.001+12:00

the man who will coach the All Blacks (or Wallabies) next year

It's all here

2007-07-28T14:28:00.000+12:00

What our Prime Minister is reading

According to a recent herald interview, Helen Clark's favourite read in the weekend is The Guardian. She also keeps tabs on the Institute for Public Policy Research, which most recently has a paper on something called a single working age benefit. There's something on a National Savings gateway,and a report on how to get Incapacity beneficiaries working. And heres a release calling for a complete ban on smacking.

This is the stuff generating ideas on KiwiSaver, Single Core Benefit, and moves to get our Sickness and Invalids beneficiaries off benefits - except that the Savings Gateway is targeted to low income people, who are less likely to save - but KiwiSaver is targeted to workers under 65 - with a most likely uptake of those on higher incomes.

2007-07-27T20:29:00.000+12:00

record month

Well, Big News has had 1000 more hits this month than any other month.....and the month is not over yet. Thanks for reading, and returning. Feel free to make comments...

2007-07-27T17:53:00.000+12:00

Chief executive must have feared his minister was to be untruthful

Well now that Benson-Pope has gone there are other issues to determine. Environment Ministry CE Hugh Logan did not tell the State Services Commission that David Benson -Pope told him that he will likely be less free and frank with meetings involving Ms Setchell.

Benson-Pope never told the PM or the media that either - even when asked. He said he had no knowledge of the details of the case and referred everyone to the State Services Commission's report. Could that be because the offending statements were not in that report? Of course!

Because Benson Pope was expected to be economical with the truth about his involvement, Logan was loathe to reveal that his minister was not telling the full story.

Lies by omission. Logan should have told the truth too. Because he didn't provide the full truth possibly due to the expected behaviour of his Minister, he now has to do a report to State Services Commission bosses. How the SSC reacts to that report will depend on whether Logan keeps his job.

If Logan goes,he won't have a $110,000 backbenchers job to fall back on.

2007-07-27T11:19:00.000+12:00

Benson-Pope is gone!!!!

Sound like Benson Pope will be gone by lunchtime. TVNZ have done a useful chronology of cockups and managed to spell Benson-Pope in three different ways - perhaps to go with three different versions of his story. Benson-Pope will be giving a statement later on.

UPDATE He resigned before he was pushed. Well before lunchtime too. Now, I wonder if Ministry for the Environment boss Hugh Logan will be asked whether he Benson-Pope told him "I`m not having this woman working in my office" - and if he did so, whether Logan will reveal that.

Benson-Pope said he regretted his resignation but he had not done anything "inappropriate".

"I have had more than my fair share of personal abuse and attack from the opposition, their fellow travellers and parts of the media," he said in his statement, which he wrote last night after Heather Simpson called him and told him it was all over.

Most of the attacks were deserved, of course. Good riddance. Lets have a by-election as well.

Well done the media - particularly Duncan Garner. Well done the opposition researchers for question 6.Without you Benson -Pope would still be a Minister today.

2007-07-26T18:54:00.000+12:00

Benson-Pope's admission

David Benson -Pope has finally admitted that he had a chat to the Chief Executive of the Ministry of the Environment and told him he would not be comfortable working with Madeleine Setchell - that he would be less free and frank with her. Setchell is the partner of John Key's chief media advisor and was accepted for a ministry job..

All along Benson-Pope has been misleading about whether he gave an opinion to Hugh Logan about whether Setchell should keep her job. He has misled Parliament, the media and the State Services Commission as well as Helen Clark.

He is a liability and his credibility is shot. How can he possible be trusted.The honourable liar should be sacked. I think he will be. Mr Logan and Deputy State Services Commissioner Iain Rennie will hold a media conference tomorrow which may shed more light on the truth.

However the story will not finish then - remember Helen Clark still said that Setchell shouldn't have been appointed in the first place, undermining the neutrality of the public service. Michael Cullen has come out in support of his leader's statement. The Press Gallery still have some work to do. Setchell lost her job solely because of her relationship - not because of her political affiliation, and if the PM says Setchell should not have been appointed, she appears to be content she was sacked.

That's a disgrace.

2007-07-25T13:11:00.000+12:00

riding crop woman advertises cane on Trade Me

The woman who was acquittrd for disciplining her son with a cane and a riding crop prior to the Section 59 debate has advertised her cane on Trade Me to cover her legal fees.

2007-07-23T21:50:00.000+12:00

Public Service no longer neutral: advisors give more than advice

Helen Clark's statement on Morning Report today that Madeleine Setchell should never have been appointed to a public service role because she is the partner of John Key's press secretary may well spell the end of the neutrality of the Public Service and publicity of the escalation of the role of the advisor. To my knowledge, Setchell is the first to be sacked through the work of an advisor.

The Prime Minister said that senior advisor Steve Hurring, who made the call about Ms Setchell getting the Environment Ministry job acted independantly of David Benson Pope, even though she knew that Benson Pope was aware of the issues. Benson Pope said he had nothing to do with the case even after Hugh Logan, chief executive of the Environment Ministry, had personally rung and told him about it.

As Colin James notes politicial advisors speak for the ministers. Hurring was carrying out a task on behalf of the minister for which he had no authority to do. If the minister didn`t know that his advisor was carrying out that task, that is an issue. It means either advisors have too much power or such ministers are not on top of their job. If he did know, he should be sacked for lying and misleading the PM.

My view is that political advisors should stick to policy, not get involved in employment matters. They should be appointed to give advice, not just on their political leanings. Sure they will be looking for jobs after the election. It's well known Hurring was heavily involved in Labour, not just the public sector. He was a former Labour vice-president and a former union official. His partner, incidentally, is Helen Kelly, new head of the CTU. Of course that should means nothing as personal relationships should not have anything to do with being employed as a public servant, but you see the irony when Huring apparently thinks it does if that relationship straddles political divides.

Advisors have no legal authority to give advice to the bureaucratic executive. Advisors give advice to - and sometimes make decisions on behalf of - their minister. Actually, according to their code of conduct, that advice has to be impartial but in reality it never is and everyone knows that.

Advisors have no right to make decisions on initiating the removal of public servants. That sort of "dictatorship of officials" should have no place in New Zealand and Helen Clark, who as Minister responsible for the appointment of advisors through Ministerial Services, should start being responsible.

Trouble is, being responsible is not a core Labour value.

2007-07-23T09:04:00.000+12:00

the neutrality of the public service

In light of Kevin Taylor's partner Medeline Setchell's outing form her job and the involvement of David Benson Popes office, questions are being rasied as to whether the Public Service (and the State Services Commission) is neutral or aligned to the Government of the day. Setchels job as Communications manager for the Environment Ministry would have provided her with Government strategy with regards to Climate Change - a policy aimed to woo the important Green vote.

Now, when I was working for the Ministry of Social Development about two years ago - and guess who the Minister was - public servants were told not to march against the Foreshore and Seabed bill as it was a sensitive bill and against Government policy. This directive came from the State Services Commission and was relayed down to us by my immediate manager. Yet that manager actually took time off work and went on the march, as I understand, on paid leave. Everyone knew.

When Don Brash made his Orewa Speech, I responded to that speech with a carefully worded letter to the Dominion Post. I almost got into trouble for that as well, when Regional Operations Managers were alerted to the letter and I was given a talking to, because Brash's speech was against a sensitive Government issue - despite the fact I did not give my opinion on such sensitivities. I was not reprimanded as I probably would have won a personal grievance case.

It appears the more sensitive the issue, the more likely the Public Service is not neutral. Finally, if the PMs office told Benson Popes office not to get involved in the appointment, questions will be asked why Benson Popes office made that phone call and if Benson Pope is said not to know about that, that leads to two more questions: why didn't he know about it when the PMs office did, and if he did know about it, why did he say that he didn't?.

Helen Clark would be wise to distance herself from David Benson Pope and his office. She should sack him. Not to do at least one of these two things undermines the neutrality of the Public Service.

UPDATE Prime Minister Helen Clark on Morning Report today said that Setchell should never have been hired, presumably because she is a partner of someone linked to another politicl party. That is alarming!

PRESENTER: One sees that there are things that may have gone wrong all along this process, but primarily it seems the mistake that's made is that her application was progressed at all.
CLARK: That's probably right Sean, and in the light of the advice that the State Services Commission later gave Mr Logan.

Helen Clark has just stated that people who have relatives, partners or friends connected to political parties other than Labour need not bother to apply for senior roles in the public service before the election.
National says this is proof that Labour sees the public service as an extension of its political operation.

2007-07-21T11:25:00.000+12:00

David Benson-Pope about to get spanked

The media is finally reporting that Panty Slut Boy (more commonly known as David Benson-Pope) forced a civil servant out of a job after three days because she happens to be the partner of Kevin Taylor. Well, PSBs office made the phone call that led to the dismissal. Kevin Taylor is John Key's chief press secretary. Benson-Pope claimed not to know anything about it.

You can bet that he did.

Yet why did it take two weeks for the media to report this? This letter was sent to the Dominion Post - and published - more than two weeks ago.

I think it is absolutely outrageous that a public servant who honestly declares her relationships when applying for a job subsequently loses her job within a week because the Minister finds out she happens to be the partner of Kevin Taylor, the Opposition leader's press secretary. I have no doubt that the minister, David Benson-Pope,had a role in forcing Madeline Setchell out.

If Ministers maintain it is inappropriate to comment on employment decisions, surely it is inappropriate to interfere in employment decisions. To interfere in such a way and then publicly maintain political distance by lying is vile behaviour.

Looks like Labour is to get a spanking in the House next week. Auckland political scientist Barry Gustafson thinks Labour is in real trouble. Even Richard Prebble picks National to win the 2008 election by 3:1. I think that's generous, the odds are far greater.

Why is this liar -Benson Pope - still a Minister? He has allegedly been involved in BDSM activities, has stuffed tennis balls in kids mouths when he was a teacher, but more to the point, he has consistently lied to the media. Why is the media not standing up to these lies?

No wonder Panty Slut Boy never smiles in public. He must be a very sad man. Perhaps he only smiles when he gets spanked.

Read more here and
here for further developments to this story.

2007-07-20T01:54:00.001+12:00

Jumping ship from United Future

Notorious Christian letter writer and former United Future candidate Steve Taylor is turning his hand to media releases as the Deputy Leader of the Direct Democracy Party. Here he says it's 'time to kick the hell out of Hell's Pizza

DIrect Democracy's leader is Kelvyn Alp, who supports the legalisation of marijuana for medical use,and supports same sex adoption both of which Taylor presumably didn't support when he was a UF candidate. Former neo-nazi Kyle Chapman is also a member of Direct Democracy.

What an interesting bunch. A former head of the National Front, a conservative Christian, and a leader who states "All Direct Democracy candidates are of similar political views as I; this is the very reason we have combined to present a real alternative and not just another off-shoot of another Party"

2007-07-18T17:32:00.000+12:00

Study prostitution

Do you want to know more about prostitution? Well, education officials may be considering whether you can study it if people put proposals forward. Education officials also say such changes could go some way to boost quality and relevance in the sector.

I'm sure a range of guest speakers could be lined up - former Labour MP Georgina Beyer, David Lane from the Society for the Promotion of Community Standards, and Catherine Healy or Calum Bennachie from the Prostitutes Collective. David Benson-Pope could relay his experiences with B&D.

It will be interesting going on a field trip on such courses - perhaps one could combine it with some Wananga twilight golf studies and get a double hole in one - paid for with a student loan for course costs.

Heh. National calls the prostitution school PC poppycock

2007-07-18T11:35:00.000+12:00

Hell-o, here's your pizza

After being done by the Advertising Standards Authority for dropping condoms in letterboxes, Hells Pizza has produced a glossy magazine that is "available at all Hell stores". Not exactly a letterbox drop but the next step back.

You can see the magazine cover here with Nikki Watson on the cover and Labour MP Darren Hughes in the background. Prime Minister Hell-en Clark even makes the cover with her "secret plans to adopt 192 children".

However, what Hells Pizza don't reveal is that this magazine is being delivered to homes with pizzas. Consequently the Family First Lobby group has called for Hells Pizza to be boycotted and have made a list of what it sees as the offending statements over here.

If you think this breaches the Advertising Standards Authority you can make a complaint using their online form. It takes about a minute.

2007-07-15T15:29:00.000+12:00

Labour Cabinet Minister says Christians can't be Cabinet Ministers in a Labour Gov't

Taito Philip Field was told by senior Labour figures in 2005 that he had no political future because he was homophobic. Apparently he is a Christian, although, it appears, not a very good one. It's pretty hard to be a good Christian Labour Minister when you are surrounded by so many liars, spinners and siting at a Cabinet table where comments like "chinless scarf wearers" are acceptable when "faggot" isn't.

Field was also told by a "middle-ranking Cabinet minister" in a "heated exchange" that he would never be a minister because of his Christian beliefs. That minister is a male and is close to Helen Clark.

Blog readers can guess who that person is. There are 20 Cabinet Ministers. The middle rankers are ranked 7-14, the others are ranked top or bottom. Here are the middle rankers:
Trevor Mallard
Pete Hodgson
Parekura Horomia
Mark Burton
Ruth Dyson
Chris Carter
Rick Barker
David Benson Pope

Who do you think was the Christophobic Minister who told Taito Philip Field that he would never be a Minister purely because of his Christian beliefs? That's as bad as telling Chris Carter he should immediately hand in his Ministerial warrant because he is gay.

2007-07-13T13:59:00.000+12:00

more criminals enter the police

More criminals are entering the police because the Government committed itself to 1000 extra frontline police. So to do it they are letting in criminals and dropping standards. Police bosses have said that 25 2006 applicants had minor convictions and had they been able to defend themselves at the time many would not have been convicted.

So convictions are not about whether you break the law, they are about whether you have enough money to defend charges. If so, you have a better chance of getting off. That's why the poor are likely to be criminals and rich people like All Blacks are able to have diversion, not once, but twice. Next thing we`ll be having applicants to Police College getting diversion to cut down the number of police with criminal convictions.

2007-07-10T14:05:00.000+12:00

selective reporting

When the glamorous newsreader broke the story of the LA mayor’s extra-marital affair she kept the juiciest detail to herself — she was his lover.

Ms Salinas, 35, has spent many months reporting for Telemundo, a Spanish-language TV network, on the affairs of the man she secretly loved. More here.

2007-07-10T10:39:00.001+12:00

Hell, no

A Melbourne father says his five-year-old son was barred from enrolling in a local Catholic school because of his surname – Hell.

I wonder what Catholic Priest Father Maximilian Hell would think of that decision. Perhaps the Pope should sack Sydney's senior bishop George Pell because his name rhymes with hell.

Interesting, too that the new Pope believes hell is a real place The last one didn't. Some say he does now!

2007-07-07T23:15:00.000+12:00

reshuffling Labour

For those who don't know, the Herald's Audrey Young has a blog, as does Colin Espiner of the Press.

Young opines that Phil Goff should be the next finance minister, preferably before the next budget. This is what I said last month, but perhaps he should also be deputy leader now. Interestingly, last year David Farrar thought Maharey would win a deputy leadershp contest against Goff hands down. Wonder if he still thinks that after Maharey has made such a hash of things lately.

Young goes further and says Goff could be leader after Labour loses the election. I agree. It appears that Shane Jones and Maryan Street are heading for bigger things, despite both being list MPs. But our first lesbian deputy party leader?

Labour would have a much better chance of being in Government at the end of 2008 if Goff was leader and Jones were to be deputy sooner rather than later. I`d put Goff on Finance now. I`d also take Hodgson off Health - perhaps swapping jobs with Jim Anderton or even better, letting Damian O'Connor have a go at Health and pointing Hodgson to the backbenches where he can spin quietly. Also, later this year I`d put Annette King on Corrections, give Clayton Cosgrove the Police portfolio, Cullen can have Social Development and his other portfolios and Benson Pope can stick to this Environment portfolio and see who else he can fire from their jobs. He can have a few associate portfolios - like Associate Minister for both Archives NZ and the National Library. He`d be good at that. He`d get on well with Achives Minister Judith Tizard - he may even be allowed to carry her handbag.

I`d give Trevor Mallard Finance once Goff becomes leader. As for Jones, he could swap portfolios with Steve Maharey. Maharey can sit next to Hodgson in the back benches and say "f**k you" to anyone he likes without being noticed - that is, if he doesn`t want to be Massey Chancellor.

Helen Clark should resign from Parliament like Tony Blair did - and go to the UN.

Do this and Labour will coast through in 2008.

2007-07-07T12:33:00.000+12:00

supervising abortion laws

The Herald has an article on abortion. Our abortion laws haven't been administered, as there is nobody on the Abortion Supervisory Committee to issue licences to doctors and facilities. In effect, our Government is the Abortion Supervisory committee,but are not supervising abortion laws.

Therefore those hospitals and other facilities that have applied to renew their licences haven't had them renewed - but they are still doing abortions. Sure, Parliament recently appointed three on the committee but these members haven't yet been officially appointed by the Governor General so they can't yet look at the licence reapplications or do monitoring visits to ensure that abortion facilities are breaking the law in a consistent manner. Which they are. Within a month, each practitioner who performs an abortion has to forward documentation of that abortion to the committee within a month. Who administers this - and are records being forwarded?

But when this committee is officially appointed, it has no authority to do anything about our abortion laws, due to a 1982 Court of Appeal decision stated that they committee could not interfere with doctors' individual clinical decisions. And according to our legislation it is the doctor who is responsible for ensuring abortions are legal, not the Abortion Supervisory Committee.

So despite our law stating that this committee has to ensure that this law is adhered to in practice, it is unable to do so if doctors don't, which is why we have abortion on demand in this country. The committee is powerless to do anything about the both the abortion rate and how laws are upheld and the Government is too afraid to do a review of our laws - even when told by the committee that 98 percent of abortions are conducted on "pseudo-legal grounds".

Instead all the committee does is ensure that there is a consistency in the application of the law - irregardless if that means that the law is consistently broken.