Archive for October, 2011

• 

  Chogm fails to challenge Sri Lanka on human rights - by Keith Locke

  
  
  
  Human rights was the loser at this year’s Commonwealth Prime Ministers’ conference (GHOGM). Endorsing Sri Lanka to host the next (2013) conference was a slap in the face for those calling for an independent international investigation into the 2009 massacre in northern Sri Lanka and an end to the ongoing persecution of the Tamils. To [...] read more
  October 31, 2011 12:17 pm - 5 Comments
• 

  Greens still best for Auckland transport - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  National and Labour have now both revealed their transport plans for Auckland. read more
  October 30, 2011 5:17 pm - 26 Comments
• 

  Uranium yellowcake in nuclear-Free New Zealand ports - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  I think many Kiwis would be shocked to find out Nuclear-Free New Zealand is playing a role in the international nuclear chain but even more so in the aftermath of the Rena tragedy that consenting requirements and response strategies are woefully inadequate. read more
  October 30, 2011 4:45 pm - 18 Comments
• 

  General debate, October 29, 2011 - by frog

  
  
  
  read more
  October 29, 2011 8:33 am - 29 Comments
• 

  Europe recognises deep sea oil risk - by David Clendon

  
  
  
  When we asked the Government last year how they would cope with a catastrophic oil leak from deep sea drilling, they proudly touted 400 Maritime NZ responders (over and over). Post the Rena, it is clear that we don’t have the capacity to respond, and yet they still aren’t worried. The Prime Minister thinks a [...] read more
  October 28, 2011 11:08 am - 13 Comments
• 

  Park the urban sprawl – how parking shapes our cities - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  The Herald reports the government has been criticizing Auckland Council for it’s new spatial plan. The government says the spatial plan places too much emphasis on improving public transport and creating a compact urban form (as if they’re bad!). read more
  October 27, 2011 9:18 am - 7 Comments
• 

  Citizen engagement at Occupy Auckland - by Keith Locke

  
  
  
  I got a buzz out of visiting the Occupy Auckland camp again this sunny afternoon. Seventy tents have mushroomed on the grass in Aotea Square  right next to the Town Hall. Hopefully the Auckland Council will continue to tolerate the camp as a venue for citizen engagement with politics. It’s not just the ‘occupiers’ discussing [...] read more
  October 25, 2011 4:43 pm - 17 Comments
• 

  Murder in West Papua - by Catherine Delahunty

  
  
  
  The events of the past two weeks in West Papua have been a savage reminder that our neighbours just to the north are not free. First there was the attack on striking miners at Freeport McMoran, possibly the world’s most disastrous gold mining area, and the competition for that title is huge. The workforce was [...] read more
  October 25, 2011 1:43 pm - 3 Comments
• 

  Nasty surprise in Disability Commissioner bill? - by Catherine Delahunty

  
  
  
  The Government has introduced legislation to establish the permanent position of Disability Commissioner at the Human Rights Commission – or has it? read more
  October 25, 2011 10:15 am - 1 Comment
• 

  General debate, October 25, 2011 - by frog

  
  
  
  read more
  October 25, 2011 6:56 am - 120 Comments
• 

  ‘Debating’ Foreign Policy: National and Green - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  Yesterday, the NZ Institute of International Affairs held an important one-day seminar on ‘The Major Economic and Foreign Policy Issues facing New Zealand, 2012-17’. The programme is here. Some excellent presentations were made, especially by Rick Boven (NZ Institute) and Duncan Currie (oceans consultant). There were three political representatives. The Minister spoke at 8.45 am. [...] read more
  October 23, 2011 10:42 am - 3 Comments
• 

  NZ Defence Force reports dodge most important torture questions - by Keith Locke

  
  
  
  Yesterday Defence Minister Wayne Mapp released two NZ Defence Force statements on prisoner treatment in Afghanistan which raise more questions than they answer. The two reports largely dodge the issues I raised in last week’s blog “Mapp’s reassurances on torture fall short” following the release of UN report on the Afghan government’s mistreatment of “conflict-related” [...] read more
  October 22, 2011 1:16 pm - 3 Comments
• 

  Open letter to Auckland councillors over the development of Te Arai beach - by Russel Norman

  
  
  
  Posted below is an letter to the mayor and councillors of Auckland from concerned Aucklander John Shaw. John is a surfer who’s passionate about the stunning beauty of Te Arai beach north of Auckland and doesn’t want to see its natural character destroyed by development  like so many of our other pristine beaches.   Dear [...] read more
  October 21, 2011 5:01 pm - 2 Comments
• 

  Bay of Plenty Regional Council ready to ask the hard questions - by Russel Norman

  
  
  
  I am encouraged to read today the Bay of Plenty regional council’s policy position on management and land use change in the Lake Rotorua catchment, which includes the recognition that land management changes alone will not be enough to achieve water quality targets. Lake Rotorua is seriously degraded and a huge reduction in the amount [...] read more
  October 21, 2011 4:14 pm - No Comments
• 

  Pictures from Tauranga - by Russel Norman

  
  
  
  Over the past week Metiria and I have been up in Tauranga. Here are some of the pictures we’ve taken. I was lucky enough to go on a helicopter flight this morning and see the Rena up close. Earlier in the week Metiria was on Motiti Island and got these pictures. read more
  October 21, 2011 11:19 am - 16 Comments
• 

  It’s official: Bicycling can save your life - by Kevin Hague

  
  
  
  The highly esteemed British Medical Journal has found, after an extensive study, that cycling literally saves lives. The research looked at the differences in health benefits of using a bicycle sharing scheme run in Barcelona compared with travel by a car in an urban environment. The results were clear: public bicycle sharing schemes can improve [...] read more
  October 20, 2011 10:02 am - 4 Comments
• 

  General debate, October 20, 2011 - by frog

  
  
  
  read more
  October 20, 2011 7:26 am - 84 Comments
• 

  Kaimoana, Motiti, and the oil - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  Yesterday I was on Motiti Island, where the hapu have borne the brunt of the oil and debris from the grounded Rena. You can clearly see the Rena really from the coast. The hapu are extremely well organised with clean-up crews. They have all the protective gear and they are sending teams out every day. [...] read more
  October 19, 2011 1:31 pm - 14 Comments
• 

  Building industry sees eye-to-eye with Green economic policies - by Russel Norman

  
  
  
  The Construction Strategy Group has recently published their report on the state of the building industry entitled Valuing the Role of Construction in the NZ Economy. The Construction Strategy Group is a lobby group and is made up of a who’s who in the industry. Their report outlines a number of key initiatives they’d like [...] read more
  October 19, 2011 9:19 am - 3 Comments
• 

  Transport funding CONsultation - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  A few months ago I wrote a draft submission on the Government Policy Statement on Land Transport funding and encouraged members of the public to send it in. Normally, I generally don’t encourage people to make form submissions on a topic but because the issue of land transport funding is pretty technical I wanted to [...] read more
  October 18, 2011 1:55 pm - 5 Comments