economy Archive

• 

  Can’t or won’t? - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  On Tuesday, Steven Joyce, Minister of Economic Development and Science and innovation, wrote about the ‘you cant’s’ of our country, in an opinion piece in the NZ Herald. Feeling that perhaps I am one of those people he criticises as ‘people who in the one breath chant “more jobs, more jobs” and then in the next breath say “but don’t do that, or that, or that”, I thought I would ask Mr Joyce a few questions about why he and... read more
  February 10, 2012 2:11 pm - 11 Comments
• 

  The Christmas story: Russel Norman’s Address in Reply speech - by frog

  
  
  
  “These are the values that help to lay down the essential nature of what it means to be human and guide us to live a ‘good’ life – good to ourselves, good to one another, and good to the world in which we make our livelihoods.” – Russel Norman. Address in Reply speeches are long, [...] read more
  December 21, 2011 9:48 pm - 8 Comments
• 

  A precautionary tale - by David Clendon

  
  
  
  Following is an extract from Hansard, recording an exchange I had with energy Minister Hekia Parata back in April.  The question was asked at a time when iwi, hapu, environmental groups and others were trying to persuade the government that issuing permits for deep water drilling is a bad idea. David Clendon: What is the [...] read more
  October 10, 2011 9:52 am - 9 Comments
• 

  Boom times for oil and gas? - by David Clendon

  
  
  
  This morning’s  Dominion article about ‘boom times’ for the gas and oil exploration industry is an intriguing, even slightly funny, mix of boosterism, drum beating and dissimulation. The Chair of PEPANZ appears almost breathless with excitement as he seeks to fulfil the primary objective of his organisation, “to publicise, promote and advance the interests of [...] read more
  September 7, 2011 9:59 am - 6 Comments
• 

  Invest in sustainability or uddermine our future? - by David Clendon

  
  
  
  Some straight talking from Michael Coote in an NBR (July 1st) article about the Indian economy. Noting the government’s enthusiasm for a free trade agreement with India,  Coote writes that : “The D-word – dairy – cited by Mr Key in in linking together the wonders of free trade with China and India should give [...] read more
  July 11, 2011 9:00 am - 7 Comments
• 

  ‘Green Growth’ – making it real. - by David Clendon

  
  
  
  I’m looking forward to seeing what the Pure Advantage group come up with later today when they launch their campaign “to deliver world-leading improvements to our economy, our environmental performance and the living standards of all New Zealanders”.  I suspect it will be considerably more innovative and better informed than what we saw earlier this week from the government-appointed  [...] read more
  July 7, 2011 3:45 pm - 15 Comments
• 

  An inspiring and visionary look at the NZ economy - by frog

  
  
  
  If you want a clear and exciting alternative to “More dairy, more mining“, look no further than this! Sir Paul Callaghan busts some common myths about ourselves and puts for a vision for our future that everyone can get excited about. Watch the presentation on YouTube. Sadly embedding of the video has been disabled for [...] read more
  June 3, 2011 9:59 am - 33 Comments
• 

  Blackball Mayday Speech - by Kevin Hague

  
  
  
  While some others were focused on political events elsewhere in the country, I was in Blackball for the annual Mayday celebrations and for the launch of a memorial wheel for those who have lost their lives in West Coast mines in recent years, most notably the Pike River 29. Families had made tiles with the [...] read more
  May 1, 2011 11:59 am - 2 Comments
• 

  Productivity gains or party politics? - by David Clendon

  
  
  
  This week the Productivity Commission has been given its first task.  The Commission came into being late one Saturday night last December, with the house under urgency, and the Greens the only party in opposition to it. In the first reading speech I said of the proposed Commission : “It could reinforce outmoded, destructive, and [...] read more
  April 1, 2011 12:27 pm - 15 Comments
• 

  Tertiary education cuts still not healing - by David Clendon

  
  
  
  The Tertiary Education Union is concerned that NorthTec is looking to cut positions in trades training at a time when there is already a serious skills shortage.   We can expect the demand for trades people will only increase when the rebuilding of Christchurch begins in earnest, and the development of infrastructure in Auckland proceeds apace, among other things.  I’m [...] read more
  March 31, 2011 1:08 pm - 2 Comments
• 

  Paying to rebuild Christchurch: A small temporary earthquake levy - by Russel Norman

  
  
  
  While the horror of Christchurch’s second earthquake continues to unfold, those of us not immediately involved in the recovery can begin to plan for the rebuilding of a city and the livelihoods of those who live there. The question that immediately comes to mind is how are we going to pay for the recovery and [...] read more
  February 25, 2011 9:45 am - 76 Comments
• 

  State of the Planet speech 2011 - by frog

  
  
  
  Last Sunday Russel gave the annual State of the Planet speech to a packed and excited crowd at Te Mahurehure Marae in Auckland. It was a great and powerful speech that clearly defined the Green vision for Aotearoa. Russel also attacked National and Labour for bludging off our grandchildren and pulling the ladder of opportunity [...] read more
  February 3, 2011 9:22 am - 11 Comments
• 

  Green ravings = government policy, apparently. - by David Clendon

  
  
  
  My second favourite comic strip is Matthew Hooton’s weekly contribution to the National Business Review. The NBR is a useful read – its political perspective and analysis is generally different from mine, and they break some interesting stories. In the latest (December 3rd) issue, Mr Hooton reveals that, “…everyone from Mr [Trevor] Mallard to Mr [...] read more
  December 6, 2010 8:00 am - 18 Comments
• 

  Who’s slowing Auckland down? - by David Clendon

  
  
  
  The skirmish that has broken out between Mike Lee and Steven Joyce could well herald the opening of an all out war. Len Brown came into office on a platform (among other things) of advocating strongly for public transport investment, with a key project being the CDB rail loop to open up the ‘dead end’ that is Britomart, which will reduce the congestion in the inner city area that imposes significant cost on businesses as well as compromising the ability... read more
  November 10, 2010 3:23 pm - 33 Comments
• 

  Key in denial about inevitable impact of carbon charges and oil shocks - by Russel Norman

  
  
  
  John Key’s reaction to the distance-based UK departure tax shows just how out of touch he is about our economic future. This Government is deeply in denial. There is no question that climate change and rising fossil fuel prices will change travel patterns, and we should be taking this future into account in our tourism [...] read more
  November 3, 2010 2:45 pm - 16 Comments
• 

  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
• 

  Obama and Greens encourage support for small business - by David Clendon

  
  
  
  I’m not suggesting that Barack Obama has been keeping an eye on our Green party policy, but his recent highlighting of the economic and social value of small business certainly rings some familiar bells! read more
  August 19, 2010 5:35 pm - 20 Comments
• 

  Doing the business with businesses - by David Clendon

  
  
  
  July has been a busy month so far, especially for my small business portfolio.  On Monday 5th July I hosted a Smart Business breakfast in Christchurch. It was a  cosy meeting (despite the frosty morning!) at the ‘Under the Red Verandah’ cafe  with a diverse bunch of people including representatives from the renewable energy sector, coffee  roasting  industry [...] read more
  July 26, 2010 12:08 pm - 9 Comments
• 

  The Volunteer Economy – Podcast - by frog

  
  
  
  Check out the latest podcast from Parliament. It’s a goodie. Green Party MP and serial volunteer Catherine Delahunty recounts one of the most entertaining and impressive experiences of a coordinated volunteer programme.  It took a village of volunteers to support a community court case against a mine in the Coromandel, sustained over several months. It’s [...] read more
  July 8, 2010 2:53 pm - 15 Comments
• 

  David’s Diary #3 – goodbye to Korea - by David Clendon

  
  
  
  Back to Incheon airport this morning, waiting to board en route to Bangkok. I have seen some novel and interesting things in the last few days, as one would hope and expect when visiting a country for the first time. But a few minutes catching up on the news from home via dear old Granny [...] read more
  March 26, 2010 10:48 am - 4 Comments