Frogblog

General debate, May 19, 2013 - by frog

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May 19, 2013 7:02 am - 3 Comments
Crackdown on overseas borrowers – a real life example - by Holly Walker

One of my pet bug-bears about the annual “crackdown” on student loan repayments that we’ve been experiencing for the past five years since National has been in Government is the implication that it’s lazy students that are being targeted. Student loan borrowers who are eligible to repay their loans are graduates – grown ups! – with complex responsibilities and situations. read more
May 18, 2013 2:51 pm - 4 Comments
How do we create a real golden age in the arts in NZ? - by Holly Walker

Arts, Culture and Heritage Minister Christopher Finlayson found himself fighting a losing battle on twitter last night as he tried to defend his hyperbolic claim that New Zealand was currently experiencing a “golden age” in the arts under his watch. So what would create a real golden age for the arts in NZ? read more
May 18, 2013 11:46 am - 3 Comments
Better transport planning needed in Christchurch - by Eugenie Sage

This week in Christchurch I attended a breakfast lecture by visiting planning consultant Todd Litman from the Victoria Transport Policy Institute, British Colombia. He was advocating the benefits of “multi-modalism” transport planning – which basically means modern transport planning that spreads the focus over several forms of transport options – cars, public transport, cycleways, and [...] read more
May 17, 2013 1:44 pm - 2 Comments
Health Budget predictions and alternatives - by Kevin Hague

As I write this I am preparing to go into Parliament to hear the Budget, and no doubt to see Government Ministers crowing about “more money than ever before” spent on Health, and ‘brave new’ programmes for this and that. I only get the Budget documents once I’m actually in Parliament, and have to frantically [...] read more
May 16, 2013 1:09 pm - 3 Comments
Green vision for education or charter schools? - by Catherine Delahunty

The Bill that will facilitate charter schools went through the second reading last night. It relies on the Māori Party for support as no one else apart from National and ACT will vote for it. The Bill is a privatisation device to assist education franchises and groups who do not want to be accountable under [...] read more
May 16, 2013 10:38 am - 17 Comments
Hands across the sand opposing risky deep sea oil - by Gareth Hughes

With the Government’s announcement a couple of weeks ago that they are opening up 190,000 more square kilometres to oil drilling, there’s never been so much at stake in the movement to protect our waters, coasts and climate from deep sea oil. And Aotearoa is responding. Opposition to this risky extreme form of oil extraction [...] read more
May 15, 2013 4:30 pm - 59 Comments
Protection Orders - by Jan Logie

Protection Orders are in the media again, after another woman was killed by her ex-partner in breach of a protection order. Protection orders were created by the Domestic Violence Act and are one of the key tools in responding to Domestic Violence. They are issued by the Family Court. The police have also recently been [...] read more
May 15, 2013 4:03 pm - 1 Comment
David vs. Monsanto - by Steffan Browning

Monsanto’s busy lawyers Last Monday the US Supreme Court found in favour of Monsanto over yet another small farmer. Indiana soybean farmer Vernon Hugh Bowman bought some seeds from a grain company, where other farmers drop off their seed. He only wanted to sow cheap seed so bought what he called ‘junk grain’. It was [...] read more
May 15, 2013 3:59 pm - 7 Comments
Bill English – no solution to poverty - by Jan Logie

Yesterday, in reference to the budget Bill English noted “We don’t believe that there is a solution to poverty in general so I wouldn’t expect any large scale intervention”? Goodness. I guess all the work of the Expert Advisory Group on Child Poverty, consisting of much esteemed doctors, and professors and community workers, was for [...] read more
May 15, 2013 3:57 pm - 13 Comments
Power Struggles – by John Small - by Russel Norman

Pasted below is an article by John Small from Covec that was published in the Dom Post a couple of days ago. In it he argues that NZ Power should reduce prices and significantly improve retail competition, and new generation will still be fundable. He further states that there are some important details that need [...] read more
May 15, 2013 10:52 am - 38 Comments
Starfish clothing - by Jan Logie

I was very sad to hear that Starfish clothing is closing down. I’m sad for several reasons. They’re a very local company. They started in Wellington 20 years ago and have been part of Wellington life for all that time including being active in the anti-motorway protests. Laurie Foon is a genuinely lovely woman with [...] read more
May 14, 2013 2:05 pm - 17 Comments
A big week for students - by Holly Walker

This week marks graduation at Auckland and Victoria Universities, where thousands of students, along with their families, will get the chance to celebrate all they’ve achieved. This week is also Budget week, which has historically brought some pretty bad news for students. Last year’s Budget gifts from the Government included: removing access to student allowances [...] read more
May 14, 2013 10:32 am - 3 Comments
Black milestone in climate change reached - by Kennedy Graham

A black milestone in climate change history was reached over the weekend. Concentrations of carbon dioxide, the key ingredient in global warming, hit 400 parts per million of the air in our atmosphere, up from 280 ppm in the mid-18th century when the Industrial Revolution kicked in. Internationally, we are rushing headlong towards disaster – [...] read more
May 13, 2013 2:25 pm - 134 Comments
A motorway to save “dying” Wellington? - by Julie Anne Genter

Recently, to shrug off blame for the Wellington region’s contraction in employment per capita, the government has taken to blaming the city council’s opposition to roading. As I have mentioned before, National has big plans to spend billions (perhaps as much as $5 billion, if we include the $2.4 billion interest on the private loan [...] read more
May 12, 2013 11:55 pm - 72 Comments
General debate, May 12, 2013 - by frog

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May 12, 2013 9:55 am - 31 Comments
Precious kauri need committed action - by Steffan Browning

Kauri dieback disease (Phytopthorataxon Agathis or PTA) needs a solution but this Government isn’t providing it. The relentless killer of our iconic kauri is not waiting and the group tasked with tackling PTA, is lacking a $5 million government commitment to achieve a breakthrough. The famous giant kauri, Tāne Mahuta, and the kauri forests deserve [...] read more
May 10, 2013 4:34 pm - 2 Comments
Christchurch mental health initiative better than “all right” - by Kevin Hague

Seeing images of the extent of the devastation wrecked by the earthquakes on Christchurch was depressing. I couldn’t even imagine how life must be for the people who had to work and raise their families in such tough conditions. So it’s great to see bright splashes of colour with the positive message of caring and [...] read more
May 10, 2013 9:57 am - No Comments
Tui Mine – Healing the Maunga - by Catherine Delahunty

The Tui Mine was abandoned in the 1970s on the side of Mt Te Aroha. It was a small copper and gold mine which left an ugly legacy. The mine’s toxic waste dump was unstable and cracking and the water downstream of the underground mine workings were poisoned by the heavy metals leaching from the [...] read more
May 9, 2013 4:00 pm - 1 Comment
Topics announced for Youth Parliament 2013 - by Holly Walker

It’s Youth Week, with events happening around the country celebrating all that it is to be young and encouraging young people to live like legends. As a part of Youth Week, Youth Affairs Minister Nikki Kaye has today made an announcement on this year’s Youth Parliament, including releasing the issues that the Youth MPs will [...] read more
May 9, 2013 3:43 pm - No Comments
Police murder citizens preparing to protest in West Papua - by Catherine Delahunty

Last week West Papuans suffered more abuse and injustice from Indonesian Police personnel. The 1st of May marked 50 years of West Papua suffering under Indonesian rule. Citizens throughout Papua prepared to commemorate this day, however, events that occurred just prior to this date, typify and highlight the injustices that Papuans have suffered over the [...] read more
May 9, 2013 12:16 pm - No Comments
Pre-pay for recycling: it’s the way forward - by Denise Roche

Today the Government is crowing about their TV Takeback scheme. While I am grateful that TVs are being diverted from landfill, this solution is the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff. The programme collected 23,000 televisions in the Hawke’s Bay and the West Coast, which cost the taxpayer over half a million dollars. This [...] read more
May 8, 2013 6:01 pm - 10 Comments
Kudos to the Warehouse for pay move - by Denise Roche

It’s great news that the Warehouse is making it a policy to lift wages. This move is partly inspired by the Living Wage campaign. The Green Party has been actively supporting this campaign that would see big employers sign up to pay a living wage. This is the wage that would allow their employees to [...] read more
May 8, 2013 3:44 pm - 6 Comments
“What Does It Take” … to extract climate change action from this Government? - by Kennedy Graham

Yesterday the World Met. Organization released its annual ‘Statement on the Status of the Global Climate’. The report, which investigates the major climate & weather events of the past year, found 2012 to be the 27th consecutive year with above average global temperatures. Global average temperature in 2012 was 0.45⁰C warmer than the 1961-90 long-term [...] read more
May 6, 2013 4:57 pm - 130 Comments
General debate, May 5, 2013 - by frog

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May 5, 2013 7:31 am - 178 Comments