Posts by Metiria Turei

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  Ugly, inaccurate and incomprehensible - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  This unidentified billboard has appeared in Cable Street: ugly, inaccurate and incomprehensible.  Perhaps that’s why no one was prepared to put their name to it.  I can only guess that it is has been paid for by the First-Past-the-Post lobby that is pushing to get rid of proportional electoral systems. It seems to lament the [...] read more
  October 19, 2010 3:35 pm - 28 Comments
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  Will Labour really take action on child poverty? - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  Annette King’s speech to the Labour Party conference over the weekend was all about how Labour’s policy will focus on children and “put our children first”. It all sounds quite familiar, but, all cynicism aside, it is really good to hear Labour talking like this. The more political parties put children at the heart of [...] read more
  October 18, 2010 10:32 pm - 138 Comments
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  Paula Bennett asks Iwi for a handout: Govt is broke - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  The person ultimately responsible for child abuse is the abuser. Holding individuals to account for their violence and cruelty is critical but more is necessary. We need to make families more resilient, build community responsibility to break the code of silence. There have been better descriptions than I can give written by others about how [...] read more
  August 23, 2010 10:02 pm - 43 Comments
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  Inequality in Aotearoa: imprisonment - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  We are debating the Future Focus bill in Parliament as I write. We know that last time there was work testing for sole parents there were serious concerns about child welfare. The bill denigrates the value of education for sole parents and their children. The bill is punitive, discriminatory and will massively increase poverty, increasing [...] read more
  August 17, 2010 5:50 pm - 75 Comments
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  Inequality in Aotearoa: updated statistics - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  A major report was released today. Household Incomes in New Zealand: Trends in Indicators of Inequality and Hardship 1982-2009 uses data from the Household Economic Survey to update a wide range of poverty and inequality measures and analyses the findings thoroughly in a 150 page report. Missed it? You could be forgiven for doing so [...] read more
  August 16, 2010 7:25 pm - 22 Comments
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  Inequality in Aotearoa: life expectancy again - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  There was an interesting report on Friday about the links between life expectancy, inequality, and smoking which revealed some pretty scary findings: the rich are living longer, the gap in life expectancy between rich and poor is growing, and so is the gap in life expectancy between Maori and non-Maori. Radio New Zealand’s report noted [...] read more
  August 14, 2010 9:06 pm - 87 Comments
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  Beneficiary-bashing Bill back in Parliament, and worse than ever - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  Paula Bennett’s draconian Social Assistance (Future Focus) Bill has been reported back to Parliament by the Social Services Select Committee.  Despite overwhelming opposition to the Bill by submitters, the National Party used its majority on the Select Committee to report it back largely unchanged. They even decided to recommend a harsher reduction of benefit regime for [...] read more
  July 31, 2010 5:11 pm - 85 Comments
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  Have your say on the electoral finance legislation - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  Now’s the chance to have your say on the Electoral Finance legislation that is currently before the Select Committee. Submissions close on 17  June so get in quick! The legislation as it stands will allow third parties to spend as much as they like on election campaigns. This is unfair because it doesn’t provide a level playing [...] read more
  June 11, 2010 10:56 am - 4 Comments
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  Inequality in Aotearoa: inequality and social mobility - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  You can’t move from rags to riches when there’s a yawning gap between rich and poor. Much of the post-Budget debate has been focused on whether John Key and Bill English’s prescription for the country’s finances will increase or decrease the gap between rich and poor. Despite assuring us that he cares about inequality, Mr [...] read more
  June 2, 2010 5:09 pm - 91 Comments
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  Inequality in Aotearoa: Mind the Gap! - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  As you know, I’ve been writing a series of blog posts about Inequality in Aotearoa during April and May. I’ve also been working on ideas for solutions to the growing gap between rich and poor in New Zealand, and this morning I’ve launched a major package of eight practical ideas to reduce inequality. Here I [...] read more
  May 17, 2010 3:43 pm - 139 Comments
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  Inequality in Aotearoa: an idea whose time has come - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  A major feature of the UK election campaign whose results we’ve all been hanging off (and by the way why would we even contemplate a return to FPP given the grossly disproportionate result it’s produced over there?) was the importance of inequality. One of the Liberal Democrats’ key campaign planks was a tax-free threshold of [...] read more
  May 12, 2010 4:24 pm - 48 Comments
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  Inequality in Aotearoa: Education - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  It is often assumed that the desire to raise national standards of performance in fields such as education is quite separate from the desire to reduce educational inequalities within a society. But the truth may be almost the opposite of this. It looks as if the achievement of higher national standards of educational performance may [...] read more
  April 27, 2010 4:50 pm - 237 Comments
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  Green Parliamentary speech on UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  The Green Party welcomes the announcement that the Aotearoa/New Zealand will finally adopt the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People.  It has been our policy for many years and we are very pleased that it has happened at last.  We consider it the minimum international standard for the protection of indigenous communities [...] read more
  April 22, 2010 11:41 am - 55 Comments
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  Inequality in Aotearoa: Life expectancy - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  In the pursuit of happiness there is one essential thing you need: good health. There are many contributing factors to good health and there are also many indicators to measure if you are healthy. Over the next few posts I’ll explore a few of these indicators. This post is focussed on life expectancy. Terminal problem [...] read more
  April 12, 2010 4:55 pm - 33 Comments
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  Inequality in Aotearoa: a brief history of inequality - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  “For over 90 per cent of our existence as human beings we lived, almost exclusively, in highly egalitarian societies.” – from The Spirit Level by Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett In the case of New Zealand, it has only been quite recently — the 1990s in particular — where inequality has emerged as a defining [...] read more
  April 6, 2010 12:50 pm - 179 Comments
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  Inequality in Aotearoa: why inequality is bad for us all - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  Today I’m launching a series of blogs about the issue of inequality in Aotearoa New Zealand. Throughout April and May, I’ll be blogging twice a week about this important issue. Covering a wide range of issues from community life to obesity, violence to educational achievement, teenage pregnancy to life expectancy, I want to highlight how [...] read more
  March 30, 2010 9:00 am - 71 Comments
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  Praise, encouragement, and keeping our kids safe this Children’s Day - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  It’s Children’s Day today, a great day to recommit to protecting and caring for not just our own babies but for children everywhere. This year is the 10th anniversary of Children’s Day in Aotearoa New Zealand, which aims to: • heighten awareness of the importance and needs of children in society, and ways of promoting [...] read more
  March 7, 2010 11:18 am - 32 Comments
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  John Key, stop your attacks on whanau - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  John Key’s unnecessary attack against Hone Harawira today was wrong on three accounts. First, Key is incorrect, simply repeating media stories. Hone Harawira is not making money from the tino rangatiratanga flag. At the very worst there is a perception of a conflict of interest. MPs as part of their personal lives do find themselves [...] read more
  February 4, 2010 10:31 pm - 25 Comments
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  Living Standards report shows the income gap for the poorest kids is not getting any better - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  The Ministry for Social Development has put its NZ Living Standards 2008 report on to its website. The NZ Herald reported it, highlighting that the Labour Government’s Working for Families package cut the number of children in hardship from 26 per cent in 2004 to 19 per cent four years later. But this is still [...] read more
  February 3, 2010 5:55 pm - 71 Comments
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  Trevor defriended me on FB and I’m a bit sad about that - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  Trevor Mallard defriended me on Facebook last night and I have to tell you the story. He also defriended another person for asking the same questions I did. Not terribly sporting, I would have thought. Here are the clipped out comments between he and I: Trevor Mallard: 25c/hour. $10 week for 40 hours then minus [...] read more
  January 28, 2010 1:11 pm - 58 Comments