Why are 300 jobs going at Kainga Ora? And then National came for the scientists & Māori Language

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Kāinga Ora job cuts: About 330 roles to go as agency faces financial scrutiny

  • Kāinga Ora is cutting about 330 jobs, following previous cuts of 232 roles.
  • Chief executive Andrew McKenzie resigned in July, receiving a $365,000 payout.
  • Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Housing Minister Chris Bishop have called for clearer strategy and better financial management.

Remember how the deal to slash Kainga Ora was made over a text message between Bishop and English…

Revealed: The simple texts between Sir Bill English and Chris Bishop that led to Kāinga Ora review

Newshub can reveal Sir Bill English was signed on to head a half-million-dollar review of Kāinga Ora through a couple of simple text messages with the Minister – weeks before he even got Cabinet signoff for the review. 

Kāinga Ora’s response to the scathing report said they were hardly consulted and Newshub’s obtained text messages showing it was the Minister’s preference they had no involvement. 

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Billboard duty with Sir Bill and Housing Minister Chris Bishop back in 2017 – six years on, out with the staple guns and in with the calculators. Sir Bill was appointed to undertake a review of Kāinga Ora which, when completed, was highly critical.

“Kāinga Ora is underperforming and not financially viable,” Bishop said.

Newshub can reveal how the former Prime Minister came to head the half-million-dollar probe.

Here is the text exchange:

Sir Bill: Chris will there be a review of KO.

Bishop: We are going to do an independent review into finances, performance, cost, etc. Commence it asap, hopefully get terms of reference and reviewers sorted before Christmas. 

Sir Bill: I could help with that.

Bishop: Excellent lets do that.

This is a Government of Landlords, by Landlords, in the interest of Landlords and all it took was a couple of text messages to kill off State Housing.

National screw over first time home buyers by scrapping the $60million so they can afford the $2.9billion for rich landlords and they took from front line housing services to pay for Bill English to do his hit job on Kaianga Ora

the Government is unapologetic about its tough choices on housing, including paying Sir Bill English to review Kāinga Ora using $500,000 from the fund that pays for transitional housing – urgent accommodation for those who don’t have anywhere else to go. 

“I think it was done exceptionally well, exceptionally quickly by three experts at a very reasonable cost,” Luxon said of the review. 

But McAnulty said about 80 transitional houses “were sacrificed to pay for the review. It’s… poor”.  

…this report has been overseen by fanatcal Catholic fundamentalist and former National Party leader Bill English, who has championed social investment which is a right wing ideological experiment using big data to undermine universalism to fund just the cases that cost the State the most.

ImpactLab is a social investment company that Bill English has founded, is run by his daughter and just had New National MP Emma Chatterton leave them to join the Government.

How the living Christ Bill English can get away with reviewing Kaianga Ora using money for transitional housing, pronounce a massive debt problem and offer his company up as the solution is all a tad beyond me.

As we catch our breath over the latest public housing amputation, we hear massive cut backs in science…

One in five GNS staff could be laid off in latest public service cut

GNS Science, a government research department responsible for monitoring natural hazards, has told staff that one in five of them could be laid off.

The restructure proposal was announced to GNS workers on Tuesday afternoon, confirming that 103 positions were on the chopping block. Of those roles, scientists were set to be cut.

GNS employs 528 people. They work to study natural hazards and advise the Government, public and businesses about those hazards.

It operates the GeoNet website, and monitors hazards including earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides and tsunamis.

It has scientists working to innovate energy production, and building a better understanding of changes in the natural world and potential solutions to climate change.

…and now the Māori language…

Te Pāti Māori warns Govt of ‘million Māori’ wrath over $30m cut to Te Ahu o te reo Māori programme

  • Flat Bush Primary principal Banapa Avatea and the union representing teachers are “extremely disappointed” by the $30 million cut to the Te Ahu o te Reo Māori programme.
  • Post Primary Teachers’ Association president Chris Abercrombie called the cut “short-sighted” and disputed claims the programme lacked impact.
  • Labour’s associate education spokeswoman Willow-Jean Prime said cutting resources for te reo Māori undermines its value in education.

…don’t tell me we don’t have the money for these things, we borrowed $14billion for tax cuts, we have $3.1billion for landlord tax loops holes, we have $5million for military boot camps that don’t work, we have hundreds of millions for the tobacco industry, we have tens of millions for ACTs Red Tape Palace, we have $4million for ACTs Treaty Referendum Bill (that will never pass), we have a billion to cut up the IRex Ferry deal – we have money to burn when it is an ideological vanity project for the Right, but scientists, public housing and the Māori language can all go fuck themselves under this hard right, racist, climate denying, beneficiary bashing, disabled abusing Government.

At some stage we need as a people to be shocked by what we have allowed the Right to mutate us into in less than a year.

 

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21 COMMENTS

  1. Just another dose of bull shit from these people .Is anyone adding up how much money they are actually wasting .None of these projects that have been started and now wont be finished will give any return for the money already spent will they ?.What use is a half built hospital to any one ,and we will have two ,Whangarei and Dunedin .Then there is the half built ports for the ferries and the part built boats that were to be delivered 2026 .The list goes on and on just look at the housing projects that were started and now the land sits vacant growing weeds and homing rats .
    Mean while jobs are going down the drain all over the country with 600 announced today and more yesterday adding up to close to 1000 in two days .At least Luxon admitted on one news earlier in the week that the economy was poorly run and performing badly .

  2. These white people are attacking Maori daily because Maori have an identity that they are proud of .Where as white people can only identify as being decended from a group of land thieves and murdering thugs .So the plan is to destroy as much of Maori culture and well being as they can .I think their plan is too late as they are soon going to reap some very serious consquences.

  3. Bill english. The double-dipping Dipton dribbler.
    “At some stage we need as a people to be shocked by what we have allowed the Right to mutate us into in less than a year.”
    Yep. Two loooooooooooooooooooooong years to go before the same morons vote for the same morons and fuck it all up again.

  4. “Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Housing Minister Chris Bishop have called for clearer strategy and better financial management.”

    A clear strategy …. Fund and force Kainga Ora to ensure 90 percent of the population own their own home.

    Does 90 percent home ownership align with National Party values? It used too.

  5. They are making shit up to suit their narrative. This becomes more and more obvious week by week. No wonder they are doing their best to not front the media. Complete shit show.

    • Yep and the media are not hunting them down either…they are getting away with blue murder..

      Luxon, being the gutless wonder chicken that he is, is running for cover at every opportunity…won’t front the media in the foyer of the Beehive , does fuck all media standups, instead prefering to make absolute toe curlingly embarassing infantile tik tok rubbish videos.

      Where do the delusional think that this is all going to end up … because there is not 1 iota, not 1 scrap of evidence, that suggests that it will be nothing but a disaster at every measure…

  6. WOW this is amazing what I am seeing with the COC they are either truly transformative or they don’t actually know what the f**k they are doing. Looks like Slash & Burn Mentality IMHO ???

  7. Bill and Bish don’t like debt being used for long term investment in public housing, or the jobs this creates for builders, trades people, young apprentices and in turn the multiplier effect this then has throughout the wider economy.

    No problem though with the govt racking up debt and running deficits to enable the $2.9 billion tax rebates for Landlords, and the $2.3 billion p.a. in accommodation supplements, aka annual landlord subsidies which puts an artificially high floor under sky high landlord rents.

    Real genius at work.

  8. Some past history of Bill English, Roman Catholic and near to last of 11 children. He probably thinks he knows all about overcrowding – had to bunk in with brother say. and perhaps two younger ones. Well fed, warm bedclothes, roof that didn’t leak etc.

    Editorial: Bill English wise to get religion out of the way
    NZ Herald
    https://www.nzherald.co.nz › New Zealand
    12 Dec 2016 — While he was an active Catholic and proud of it, he said he would not be using his position to promote socially conservative changes in New Zealand.

    What is a socially conservative when one sees it close up?

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_English#Personal_life
    Post-prime ministerial career
    In 2018, English joined the board of Australian conglomerate, Wesfarmers. English serves in Chairmanships of Mount Cook Alpine Salmon, Impact Lab Ltd and Manawanui Support Ltd. He is also a director of The Instillery, Centre for Independent Studies and The Todd Corporation Limited, and is a member of the Impact Advisory Group of Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets.

    In mid December 2023, the National-led coalition government appointed English to lead an independent review into housing agency Kāinga Ora’s financial situation, procurement, and asset management.[81] On 20 May 2024, English’s review found that Kāinga Ora exploited its easy access to Government credit and excessively borrowed without exercising fiscal discipline.

    What useful experience and particular training has English and his ilk had. in running the country and assuming the power to make decisions about others’ personal life?

  9. The more there are with nothing to lose, and the more neo-colonists they pour in, the greater the eventual bloodshed. Wait until the proportion of non-citizens voting for NACT comes out. Tick, tock.

  10. ” At some stage we need as a people to be shocked by what we have allowed the Right to mutate us into in less than a year. ”

    There is no shock just acceptance that this austerity program was campaigned on and voted for by around 45% of New Zealanders and given a three year mandate.

    The polls are consistently put the three governing parties at the same support received at the general election.

    With no sensible real alternative and a leader to articulate it Luxon has a clear run.

    This government’s austerity program is only just beginning.

    • NACT1st being run by the English RC Baldrick, and the the two little Kupapa Maaori Seymore and Winnie who have long been brown nosing the White Man’s behind.

  11. ” At some stage we need as a people to be shocked by what we have allowed the Right to mutate us into in less than a year. ”

    Bomber as Bernard Hickey has highlighted in his post on what austerity really means is that the 40% who voted for and are getting what they continue to support aren’t shocked and are very happy with the direction of the government and make up a large powerful voting block and gets out and votes !

    What austerity actually means and how it pays for $10 billion of tax cuts for the richest 40%

    This is an opinion piece I’ve written after publishing my morning email, which includes many of the details informing it, as have the dozens I’ve written in recent weeks detailing the policies mentioned. This piece is being sent to all subscribers in full immediately and is fully open to the public immediately. Thanks to our paying subscribers for supporting us to do this work in public.

    Dear taxpayer getting over $57,400 after tax per year
    Are you ok with this being done to lift your after-tax income by about $38 per week, and to win your vote?

    Just FYI, if you are ok with it…

    Treasury and IRD have advised the Government at least 64% of the NZ$15 billion of tax cuts being delivered to landlords and PAYE earners over the next four years will go to the top 40% of earners. That top 40% includes the two quintiles earning more than $57,400 per year after tax. These tax cuts are being paid for by some Government borrowing, some outright spending cuts and by slowing growth in spending in health, education, transport and infrastructure to rates less than inflation and population growth (ie real per-capita cuts). The Government says it’s finding fat in ‘back offices’ to remove so that ‘front line’ services aren’t and won’t be affected. It may sound and feel painless and like magic.

    After all, it feels as if back offices can be easily separated from ‘front line services’ and that back offices aren’t really people who earn and spend money and have families and mortgages or rent due. These ‘back offices’ feel more like the stationary cupboard and a photocopier that never seems to work. You may think you need and/or deserve that cash more – especially these days when it’s tough to make even a decent income go far.

    But here’s what’s actually happening:

    over 60% of GPs have stopped taking new patients, while people in Northland, Gisborne and the West Coast can no longer either see a doctor and/or get into a hospital after hours or on weekends;

    waiting lists for elective surgeries and to get into A&Es are blowing out, while staff who are burnt-out and chronically underpaid because of 30 years of real-per capita funding cuts in education & health are jumping on planes to Australia and elsewhere at a rate of two A320-loads per day;

    now we learn those tax cuts are also being paid for by kicking 1,000 kids out of motels, with the minister not knowing where 200 went or trying to work out where they are now;

    and by freezing funding for disabled people, including banning net new additional residential care places or spending, which means only disabled people who committed crimes, are insane or are stuck in a hospital bed can get in, and even then they’re not guaranteed a place; and,

    despite a social housing shortage estimated in the hundreds of thousands and the most expensive rents in the world, the Government has chosen to stop building new social homes itself, and has yet to say how or when or how much it will provide Community Housing Providers (CHPs) to build only half the amount being previously built per year by the state house builder…maybe.

    I could detail many, many more examples, but this email is already long enough.

    It’s feeling a lot more like 1990 and 1991, but without any good reasons
    Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Social Development Minister Louise Upston are quickly becoming a double-act resembling Finance Minister Ruth Richardson and Social Welfare Minister Jenny Shipley at their welfare-net-shredding-worst from 1990 to 1993, or Finance Minister Roger Douglas and Railways & SOE Minister Richard Prebble arguing the economy and society had to change radically to avoid bankruptcy.

    Back then, both sets of job-shedding and cost cutting ministers could credibly argue the Government had to cut to ensure it could avoid bankruptcy on its foreign debts and New Zealanders could afford to buy what they needed from overseas. The Government’s foreign debts back then forced the Government to find foreign exchange worth up to 25% of total Government revenue to service the debt.

    But that was then and this is now.

    That debt servicing cost is now barely 5% of revenues and paid in NZ dollars, which, push comes to shove, which it did just four years ago, the Reserve Bank can print the money to pay the interest bill.

    Back in 1984, we had to earn foreign currency to pay the interest on the Government’s massive foreign-currency denominated debts built up during the Muldoon era. We had a fixed exchange rate and the interest rates on that debt often rose fast. If interest rates rose and our currency was devalued because of some sort of slump in commodity prices or oil supply crisis, then New Zealand’s Government was immediately broke, or at least felt that way.1 But then we floated our currency and paid our way, albeit with immense economic and social pain.

    Back in 1990, New Zealand was again in mortal danger of a double-downgrade from a ratings agency after another oil shock and because the BNZ had to be bailed out and then sold off. Richardson and Shipley slashed benefits and hacked into the core of our welfare state, but at least there was some sort of economic justification. Our Government still had a lot of foreign currency debt and had a very volatile currency. Unemployment approached 11% and interest rates were in double-digits. That is an economic crisis that requires some sort of major response. You can argue about the lethality and the response back then, but there were genuine crises in 1984 and 1990/91.

    Now, the New Zealand Government has no major foreign currency debt2 and has not issued bonds in foreign currencies for 20 years. All the Government’s borrowing is with fixed interest rates in New Zealand dollars. All the risks from any currency slump or interest rates blowing out are borne by private lenders and funds, not the Government. Unemployment is very low. Household debt is actually lower relative to incomes than a decade ago.

    In the days of ‘Ruthanasia’ and ‘Rogernomics’, politicians argued New Zealanders had to ‘take the pain’ for avoiding bankruptcy and a national economic collapse. That pain was heaped on the poorest and the sickest and on tangata whenua in particular, but at least there was some sort of national purpose.

    There’s no financial crisis needing a response this time
    These latest real-per-capita cuts that are making the poorest, sickest and most disabled even sicker and poorer are justified on the grounds that ‘taxpayers need tax relief’ after a ‘cost of living crisis’. The trouble is most of those tax cuts are going to people who are the wealthiest, healthiest and least in need.

    Their savings and term deposits have risen by $62 billion or a third to $264 billion since the first Covid lockdowns. Household net worth, which includes homes, land, shares and deposits, rose by NZ$560 billion just over 30% to NZ$2.34 trillion in the four years since Covid.

    Neither rich households nor the Government, are ‘broke’. The only people who are ‘broke’ are paying the price to ensure the top 40% of income earners get $10 billion in extra cash. Much of which will end up being invested with bank loans in existing land and homes, or put into term deposits.

    If you are in that 40% and live in your own home, are you happy to get that extra cash knowing poor and disabled kids were forced to live in tents and sick tamariki and kuia have had to drive for hours (if they can pay for the petrol) to sit in an A&E waiting room for days?

    Seriously. Are you personally ok with that? Was that what you voted for? Was that vote satisfying?

    Kind regards

    Bernard

    PS: Here’s the IRD/Treasury analysis showing the 64% of income threshold tax cuts going to the top 40%. That’s actually before the effects of lower taxes on landlords.

    1
    Former RBNZ economist Michael Reddell wrote this post in July arguing New Zealand isn’t ‘broke’ now and wasn’t ‘broke’ in 1984 or 1991 when Government debt exceeded 50% of GDP, although it was broke in 1933 when the Crown’s debt exceeded 200% of GDP and we defaulted on those debts.

    2
    Treasury’s Debt Management Office says it has NZ$13.4 billion worth of euro-denominated commercial paper (90 days) issued as of July 31 and no longer term foreign currency debt. But that is more than offset by $22.3 billion worth of net foreign currency assets held by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, up from just $4 billion 20 years ago. Just quietly, the RBNZ has been using some of the $64 billion it printed during Covid to sell NZ dollars and buy foreign-currency denominated assets to create a foreign currency reserve to intervene to protect the currency if it ever needs to. Here’s more detail on this policy enacted over the last year.

  12. Jobs going daily 1000 in two days with the closing of the meat works as well .The sign of a poorly run economy according to Luxon .A clearing difference in the way employment has gone since these clowns took over,gone from record lows to heading for record highs .The result will be even lower tax take and record unemployment and wellfare payments .Hence the reason they are scrambling around cutting building hospitals and schools and sinking freight moving across cook straight .

    • Nathan I think the myth about roles that are not frontline don’t matter, at all, has been dispelled. That’s like telling the All Blacks we’ve ditched the medical staff on the sideline because they aren’t actually playing the game so they won’t have an impact on your ability to continue should you need treatment or strapping etc. More bullshit speak from champion bullshit artists.

  13. Nationals’ recession has just killed Timaru, meanwhile the man child Simeon Brown announce an increase in speed that kills.

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