select committee Archive

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  Transport fiasco inquiry blocked - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  Just now the National-dominated Transport and Industrial Relations Select Committee blocked my attempt at the committee conducting an urgent inquiry into the transport fiasco on the opening night of the Rugby World Cup. read more
  September 15, 2011 11:40 am - 10 Comments
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  An end to Seed Exchanges? - by Sue Kedgley

  
  
  
  I have had many queries about the Food Bill, with some suggesting it is a ghastly plot to make seed saving and seed exchange programmes illegal, and even activities such as the Willing Workers on Organic Farm systems (WWOOFing). These concerns, unfortunately, were never raised during the submission stage of the bill, when they can [...] read more
  August 5, 2011 12:43 pm - 21 Comments
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  Greens’ concern over Parliamentary urgency gains widespread support - by frog

  
  
  
  Last year, around the time the shameful Hobbit Bill was being rammed through Parliament in two days and without Select Committee scrutiny, Russel Norman posted here and here about his increasing concern over the National-led Government’s use of Parliamentary urgency to bypass normal Parliamentary process: The problem with urgency is that it often means that laws [...] read more
  April 20, 2011 9:07 am - 16 Comments
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  ACC digs a deeper hole - by Kevin Hague

  
  
  
  Financial Review of ACC today, so I subbed in for Gareth on the Transport and Industrial Relations Select Committee. Usual thing – we and Labour make the running and when things get too hot the Government members take a turn with patsy questions. ACC fronted with Chair, John Judge, by videoconference and CEO Jan White [...] read more
  February 10, 2011 4:03 pm - 35 Comments
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  37,000 say no to National Standards - by Catherine Delahunty

  
  
  
  Yesterday the petition calling for a trial of National Standards was presented to the Education and Science Select Committee. It’s the first time the committee has had a serious discussion of National Standards because the original legislation never came to us. Like so many other crazy things, it was rushed through the House under urgency. [...] read more
  September 23, 2010 10:25 am - 132 Comments
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  Early Childhood Education cuts “create opportunity” - by Catherine Delahunty

  
  
  
  Yesterday the Education Select Committee had one hour to question the Minister of Education Anne Tolley on the Budget Estimates for Education. The responses the Minister gave on the cuts to Early Childhood Education fit into the “black is really white” category. She said that the cuts to the centres were an opportunity for those [...] read more
  June 3, 2010 5:44 pm - 16 Comments
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  ETS: Four minority reports = FAIL - by Jeanette Fitzsimons

  
  
  
  The long awaited report of the special select committee to review the ETS – yes, that one with the terms of reference that didn’t even mention reviewing the ETS – you know, the one forced on the government by a coalition partner who then mostly didn’t even turn up to occupy their place on it – yes, THAT one – has finally reported. read more
  August 31, 2009 10:50 pm - 42 Comments
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  Putting the ETS “on hold”? - by Jeanette Fitzsimons

  
  
  
  Question time yesterday gleaned a little more information about the Government’s plans for the ETS – and showed the full extent of their ignorance of how the scheme works.Many people have been wondering what John Key meant when he said he would “put the ETS on hold” while it was reviewed. We now know it [...] read more
  December 17, 2008 9:08 pm - 77 Comments
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  George Monbiot gives Yvo de Boer a serve - by frog

  
  
  
  In a new Guardian video series entitled Monbiot meets…, George gives the United Nations chief climate change negotiator Yvo de Boer a serve, and asks if the Kyoto protocol is too little too late for the planet. This version of the video is from eco-tube.com. We all know now that a carbon tax would have [...] read more
  December 9, 2008 11:34 am - 62 Comments
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  EU carbon prices enjoy solid rise - by frog

  
  
  
  That’s the title of an interesting article over at CarbonPositive. Prices are rising as news of a modest increase in the EU’s emissions in 2007, (just 1%), bump up against the declining cap on emissions for 2008.   The price of the most-traded carbon contract, for forward delivery of EUAs in December 2008, closed at [...] read more
  April 12, 2008 1:06 pm - 7 Comments