Hypothetical Questions
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP and his White House staff are convinced America’s “Deep State” is out to get them. They’re probably right.
Setting the Agenda
Political analysis and commentary shaping the progressive debate in Aotearoa New Zealand, focused on power, policy, and accountability.
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Pay the full Working for Families package to all low-income families on April 1
The government has announced goals to halve child poverty in three critical measures over the next decade. These are realistic and achievable targets that will be welcomed. However, it is wrong for the government to delay the introduction of their boost to working for families for a further five months until July.
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On National’s Recent Leadership Rumblings
I was thinking about the recent rumblings in the National Party towards their ‘leadership team’, and something didn’t quite add up.
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Handouts to the Racing Industry? So no more homeless then?!
Deputy PM, Racing Minister, and de facto godfather, Winston Peters announced on Sunday (28 January) that the New Zealand racing industry was due for tax-cuts for horse breeders and a taxpayer-funded all-weather horse racing track;
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The big gaps between rhetoric and reality – Dr Liz Gordon
Essentially, the attitudes of staff heavily interfered with the welfare transaction. This is despite clear rules (which are NEVER displayed in WINZ offices) and a lot of money paid to consultants to bring about culture change in WINZ offices. The practice of putting down beneficiaries is alive and well at many of these sites (there were some exceptions).
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MPs to vote on the Greens’ Medicinal Cannabis Bill next Wednesday 31st Jan
The Greens’ Medicinal Cannabis Bill will have it’s first vote in Parliament next Wednesday 31st Jan. This is sooner than we expected, so it’s really important to hit that keyboard and urge your MP to support the bill.
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The proposed employment law changes
While these changes will make the unions job a little bit easier it will not significantly enhance workers power.
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The zombie TPPA is back!
In other words, Canada’s government showed political backbone and it succeeded. Ours caved at the first post-election meeting and rationalises that as the best they could do.
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MENTAL HEALTH INQUIRY ANNOUNCED – WILL IT DELIVER? – David Macpherson
One of the most telling sections in the terms of reference is the recognition that underlying causes of poor mental health and suicide, such as poverty, poor housing, unemployment and discrimination will be considered as part of the Inquiry’s work – without that, such a review could easily descend into a debate between mental health professionals over issues like best levels of medication, or how many mental health beds there should be in hospitals, rather than looking at the factors that cause mental unwellness.
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Let’s do this – Dr Liz Gordon
I probably wasn’t the only one out there who was a little bemused by Labour’s election slogan, ‘Let’s do this”. Let’s do what? I thought at the time. Now the ‘doing’ is at last unveiled as we learn that our Prime Minister is going to have a baby.